A federal judge has issued a nationwide injunction, temporarily blocking President Donald Trump’s executive order that tried to end to birthright citizenship.
Five undocumented pregnant women sued the Trump administration to block Trump’s executive order to exclude the children of undocumented immigrants their 14th Amendment right to birthright citizenship. U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman, after hearing arguments, issued a nationwide preliminary injunction against the executive order insuring that for the time being all children born in the United States will still be American citizens.
Judge Boardman stated, “It has been said the right to U.S. citizenship is a right no less precious than life or liberty. If the court does not enjoin enforcement of the executive order, children subject to the order will be denied the rights and benefits of U.S. citizenship and their parents will face instability. ”
This ruling from Judge Boardman comes two weeks after U.S. District Judge John Coughenour granted a temporary restraining order against the executive order calling it “blatantly unconstitutional.”
 The order, if left to stand as is, would eliminate automatic citizenship for children born in the United States to parents who are neither citizens nor permanent legal residents, including undocumented immigrants and those in the United States on temporary visas.
The executive order was signed by Trump on his first day back in office. The Lawyers for the Department of Justice have argued that the executive order toll clarify “prior misimpressions” of the 14th Amendment. They further argued that the 14th Amendment creates a “incentive for illegal immigration.” The DOJ lawyers are claiming that windfall of citizenship in essence awards illegal immigration. They argued, “Text, history, and precedent support what common sense compels: the Constitution does not harbor a windfall clause granting American citizenship to, inter alia: the children of those who have circumvented (or outright defied) federal immigration laws.
In addition to the five undocumented women, two nonprofits have also filed lawsuits against the Trump administration in relation to this executive order. Judge Boardman in her injunction ruling stated, “The U.S. Supreme court has resoundingly rejected the president’s interpretation of the citizenship clause. In fact, no court has endorsed the president’s interpretation, and this court will not be the first.”
The Trump administrations have a track previous track record of appealing any ruling that is unfavorable to them. This could be the first case of the new administration that we see land in the Supreme Court.
