The legality of President Donald Trump's policy to eliminate birthright citizenship for those born in the United States to foreign parents will be determined by the United States Supreme Court.
On the 17th (local time), U.S. media, including The New York Times (NYT), reported that the Supreme Court has decided to hear a case regarding President Trump's executive order restricting birthright citizenship.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hold oral arguments on May 15.
On Jan. 30, shortly after taking office, President Trump signed an executive order prohibiting birthright citizenship for those born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants or foreign parents without permanent residency.
According to this, if a mother is undocumented or legally in the U.S. temporarily and the father is not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, children born to them will not be granted citizenship.
As a result, several lower courts in some states decided to suspend the enforcement of the executive order; this decision applies not only to the plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit but also nationwide.
In response, the Trump administration requested to limit the lower court's injunction to the individuals and states that filed the lawsuit, or to plan for the possibility of the federal government winning in the main litigation. The administration argues that the decision of one lower court excessively restricts federal policy.
Birthright citizenship is a matter surrounding the interpretation of the 14th Amendment, which states that "all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside."
According to The Washington Post (WP), most scholars do not agree with the Trump administration's interpretation that immigrants residing in the U.S. without permission are not subject to the U.S. government's jurisdiction, as non-citizens can also be arrested, prosecuted, detained, or deported in the United States.
The Supreme Court has previously recognized birthright citizenship for the majority of people born in the U.S., excluding children of foreign diplomats.