President Donald Trump has announced plans to petition the US Supreme Court for a rehearing on an executive order aimed at ending automatic birthright citizenship, after the high court struck down the measure in a 6-3 ruling. The president, taking to his Truth Social platform on Thursday, strongly criticized the decision, asserting that American citizenship is not something to be compromised and declaring the court's legal conclusion fundamentally wrong.
Supreme Court Ruling and Executive Order
The Supreme Court's 6-3 ruling against the administration's directive delivered a substantial setback to efforts to overhaul national immigration policy. Upon taking office on January 20, 2025, President Trump had signed an executive order designed to prevent children born in the US to parents on temporary legal statuses or without legal documentation from automatically acquiring American citizenship.
Following the judicial defeat, the president characterized the outcome as detrimental to the country and urged congressional lawmakers to pursue legislative restrictions. However, that path faces steep hurdles, given consistent public support for birthright citizenship and the court's written opinion suggesting that any structural change would require a full constitutional amendment.
Legal Challenges and Rehearing Prospects
Legal analysts note that the administration's chances of securing a new hearing remain exceedingly low. The Supreme Court rarely grants petitions for rehearing, and several decades have passed since the court last allowed a retrial after a final ruling had been officially issued in an argued case.
The administration has pursued a wide-ranging overhaul of nearly all facets of US immigration since early 2025. While the birthright citizenship directive was struck down, the federal government recently secured several other judicial victories regarding immigration enforcement. These included court clearances allowing the executive branch to phase out Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designations for nationals of certain crisis-hit countries, alongside the implementation of strict border enforcement measures designed to prevent asylum seekers from entering US territory to initiate protection claims.
Constitutional Basis and Impact
Nevertheless, the Supreme Court drew a firm line regarding birthright citizenship, ruling that the administration's executive order directly violated the explicit language of the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution, which confers automatic citizenship upon individuals born in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof.
Civil rights organizations strongly praised the judicial decision, noting that it reaffirms a foundational constitutional promise regarding equality of birth. Conversely, policy research data highlighted the potential long-term demographic impacts had the executive order stood. A joint study by the Migration Policy Institute and Penn State University projected that the restriction would have resulted in an estimated 255,000 infants being born annually without legal status, potentially expanding the undocumented population by 2.7 million residents by 2045 and creating a complex, multigenerational legal underclass within the country.
