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A2 U.S. NEWS
Friday 24 January 2025
A federal judge temporarily blocks Trump’s executive order

redefining birthright citizenship

By EUGENE JOHNSON and “The executive order will
MIKE CATALINI impact hundreds of thou-
Associated Press sands of citizens nation-
SEATTLE (AP) — A federal wide who will lose their
judge on Thursday tem- citizenship under this new
porarily blocked President rule,” Polozola said. “Births
Donald Trump’s executive cannot be paused while
order redefining birthright the court considers this
citizenship, calling it “bla- case.” Trump’s executive
tantly unconstitutional” order, which he signed on
during the first hearing in a Inauguration Day, is slated
multi-state effort challeng- to take effect on Feb. 19. It
ing the order. could impact hundreds of
U.S. District Judge John thousands of people born
Coughenour repeatedly in the country, accord-
interrupted a Justice De- ing to one of the lawsuits.
partment lawyer during In 2022, there were about
arguments to ask how he 255,000 births of citizen
could consider the order children to mothers living
constitutional. When the in the country illegally and
attorney, Brett Shumate, about 153,000 births to two
said he’d like a chance to such parents, according
explain it in a full briefing, to the four-state suit filed in
Coughenour told him the Washington Attorney General Nick Brown speaks during a news conference announcing that Seattle. The Trump admin-
hearing was his chance. Washington will join a federal lawsuit to challenge President Donald Trump’s executive order to istration argued in papers
end birthright citizenship Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025, in Seattle.
The temporary restraining Associated Press filed Wednesday that the
order sought by Arizona, states don’t have grounds
Illinois, Oregon and Wash- across the country. The Coughenour, a Ronald Coughenour told Shu- to bring a suit against the
ington was the first to get suits include personal testi- Reagan appointee, began mate. Coughenour said order and that no dam-
a hearing before a judge monies from attorneys gen- the hearing by grilling the he’s been on the bench for age has yet been done, so
and applies nationally. eral who are U.S. citizens administration’s attorneys, more than four decades, temporary relief isn’t called
The case is one of five law- by birthright, and names saying the order “boggles and he couldn’t remem- for. The administration’s at-
suits being brought by 22 pregnant women who are the mind.” ber seeing another case torneys also clarified that
states and a number of afraid their children won’t “This is a blatantly un- where the action chal- the executive order only
immigrants rights groups applies to people born af-
become U.S. citizens. constitutional order,” lenged was so clearly un- ter Feb. 19, when it’s set to
constitutional.
Shumate said he respect- take effect.
The U.S. is among about 30
fully disagreed and asked
the judge for an opportu- countries where birthright
citizenship the principle of
nity to have a full briefing
on the merits of the case, jus soli or “right of the soil”
is applied. Most are in the
rather than have a 14-day
restraining order issued Americas, and Canada
and Mexico are among
blocking its implementa-
tion. Arguing for the states, them. The lawsuits argue
that the 14th Amendment
Washington assistant attor-
ney general Lane Polozola to the U.S. Constitution
guarantees citizenship for
labeled as “absurd” the
government’s argument people born and natural-
ized in the U.S., and states
that the children of parents
living in the country illegally have been interpreting the
amendment that way for a
are not “subject to the ju-
risdiction” of the United century. Ratified in 1868 in
the aftermath of the Civil
States.
“Are they not subject to War, the amendment says:
“All persons born or natu-
the decisions of the immi-
gration courts?” he asked. ralized in the United States
and subject to the jurisdic-
“Must they not follow the
law while they are here?” tion thereof, are citizens of
the United States and of
He also said the restraining
order was warranted be- the State wherein they re-
side.” Trump’s order asserts
cause, among other rea-
sons, the executive order that the children of nonciti-
zens are not subject to the
would immediately start re-
quiring the states to spend jurisdiction of the United
States, and orders federal
millions to revamp health
care and benefits systems agencies to not recognize
citizenship for children who
to consider an applicant’s
citizenship status. don’t have at least one
parent who is a citizen .q