New York Attorney General Letitia James is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to reject what she calls an unlawful attempt to eliminate birthright citizenship through executive order.
James joined a coalition of 23 other attorneys general and the City and County of San Francisco in filing an amicus brief asking the high court to strike down the president’s order, which seeks to limit automatic citizenship for children born in the United States.
“For more than 150 years, the Constitution has guaranteed that if you are born in the United States, you are a citizen of the United States,” James said. “Since his first day back in office, the president has sought to contort the law and deny some children that right. The president cannot override our Constitution with the stroke of his Sharpie. We are urging the Court to uphold the rule of law and protect the fundamental rights of every child born in our country.”
In the brief, the coalition argues that the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees citizenship to all people born in the United States and subject to its jurisdiction, with narrow exceptions such as children of foreign diplomats. The Supreme Court affirmed that principle more than a century ago, holding that children born on U.S. soil are citizens regardless of their parents’ immigration status.
The attorneys general contend that the executive order violates both the Constitution and the Immigration and Nationality Act, which codifies birthright citizenship into federal law.
They warn that allowing the order to stand would strip citizenship from hundreds of thousands of newborns each year, leaving families in legal limbo and exposing some children to potential statelessness or immigration enforcement.
The coalition also argues that the order would disrupt state systems and finances. States could lose millions in federal funding tied to citizenship or lawful status for programs such as Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, special education services and child welfare programs. States would also face new administrative burdens, including verifying parents’ immigration status for newborns.
James and 18 other attorneys general filed a lawsuit in January 2025 challenging the executive order and secured a preliminary injunction that was later upheld. The new filing comes in a separate case before the Supreme Court, Trump v. Barbara, which also challenges the order’s legality.
The coalition is asking the justices to reaffirm that birthright citizenship is a constitutional guarantee that cannot be undone by executive action.
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