California, a coalition of other states and the city of San Francisco sued the federal government on Tuesday to end President Trump's initiative. Birthright citizenship Via Executive Order – This is called an unconstitutional order in the face of long-standing legal precedent.
“I have a message for President Trump: I will see you in court,” California Atty. General Rob Bonda said during a morning news conference — calling the order “unconstitutional and blatantly un-American.”
The lawsuit asks the court to block Trump's order from taking effect — which must be done within 30 days — and to “ensure that the rights of US-born children affected by the order remain in place during the litigation process.” He said. “The president overstepped his authority by a mile with this order and we will hold him accountable.”
Bonda said Trump's order would affect more than 20,000 babies born in California each year. He noted that the state is home to around 11 million migrants, who constitute nearly 30% of the state's population and a third of its tax-paying workforce.
“I want to be clear that this is not some theoretical legal disagreement that I have with the president,” he said. “If allowed to stand, this order will endanger thousands of American citizens born in the next year — real children and families trying to live their lives in peace.”
California is suing Massachusetts and New Jersey, with the suit filed in Massachusetts, Bonda said. Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin also join those states and San Francisco as plaintiffs. Colombia.
The lawsuit is the first in California against the new Trump administration, but it won't be the last. The government sued the first Trump administration more than 100 times — mostly successfully — and Bonda said his office is reviewing. Trump's other orders and additional cases to consider.
The 14th Amendment to the Constitution – ratified in 1868 – states that “all persons born or naturalized in the United States, subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state in which they reside.”
Bonda noted that in addition to the 14th Amendment, the Supreme Court affirmed the right to be named after a Chinese American born in San Francisco in 1898. Wong Kim Arch He sued for recognition of his own citizenship. Congress codified birthright citizenship in the Immigration and Nationality Act, the states argue in their lawsuit — calling Trump's order an “executive fit.”
Children of foreign diplomats are considered a narrow exception to the rule, but children of undocumented immigrants have historically not been excluded.
Trump has criticized birthright citizenship, saying it acts as a magnet for immigrant women to enter the U.S. illegally to have a child here — and then use that child's citizenship as a means to gain legal status in the country.
On the campaign trail, Trump promised to immediately end birthright citizenship by advising federal agencies that he had misunderstood US law for years.
Trump's order, one of several he signed following his inauguration on Monday, did just that, arguing that the 14th Amendment had “never been interpreted to extend citizenship universally to anyone born in the United States” and had “always excluded birthrights from naturalized persons.” Those born in the United States but not 'subject to its jurisdiction.
Includes a child born in the United States while “unlawfully present in the United States” or having “lawful but temporary” status in that country, such as under the Visa Waiver Program or a student or tourist visa, and whose father is not a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident.
The order states that no federal agency may issue documents recognizing such children as US citizens. It said the order would apply to any baby born in the US after 30 days from Monday. He ordered all federal agencies, including Homeland Security and Social Security, to respond with guidance on how to implement the order within 30 days.
American Civil Liberties Union Filed a separate case Challenging the same order late on Monday, Executive Director Anthony D. Romero called it “unconstitutional” and a “reckless and ruthless repudiation of American values.”
“Birthright citizenship is part of what makes America a strong and dynamic nation. This order seeks to repeat one of the greatest mistakes in American history, denying those born in the United States their full rights as Americans by creating a permanent subclass,” Romero said. We will not let this attack go unchallenged. The Trump administration's overreach is so bad that we hope we will prevail in the end.
Ponta said she's been thinking for months about how to protect immigrant families in California, and that she's not surprised by Trump's decision to go after immigrant children on his first day in office and is encouraged by the united coalition. fight back.
“I feel great that we belong to other like-minded states engaged in this fight, committed to the rule of law, to upholding constitutional rights and protecting them from the attacks of an unconstitutional president,” Bonda said. He said. “This moment calls us all to action and service – it means we must rise together and support each other.”
San Francisco City Atty. David Chiu, who joined Ponta at the news conference, called Trump's order “tragic” and must be stopped.
“Immigrants make our country great, are critical to our economic success, and are central to our country's social and cultural fabric,” he said.
Immigrant advocates also joined Ponta and Chiu in condemning Trump's order, including Larry Yee, a longtime social activist and child of immigrants.
Yee, a member of the China Consolidated Benevolent Assn. In San Francisco, he said the organization fought on behalf of the Arc 120 years ago and will not abandon its defense of birthright citizenship now.
“No matter what Trump says, we have to fight it and fight it to the maximum,” Yee said. “Birth right is our right. It is our civil right. It is our economic right. And we will continue to fight this.”