US states suing Trump order eliminating birthright citizenship

A group of Democratic-leaning states launched legal action on Tuesday to block President Donald Trump’s order seeking to end the right to birthright citizenship in USA.

Two lawsuits involving a total of 22 states, including California and New Yorkwere recorded one day after Trump’s return to power, which has been marked by the promulgation of a flurry of executive orders with which the Republican seeks to redefine the country’s immigration policy.

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He particularly highlighted a measure aimed at eliminating the so-called right to land, which, protected by the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, guarantees US citizenship to any person born in national territory.

If implemented, the order would prevent the issuance of passports, birth certificates or other documents to children whose mothers are in the country illegally or temporarily, and whose father is not a U.S. citizen.

“The President’s executive order seeking to eliminate birthright citizenship is blatantly unconstitutional and, frankly, un-American,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in announcing the lawsuit.

“We are asking a court to immediately block this order from taking effect, and to guarantee the rights of children born in the United States and impacted by this order while the litigation lasts,” he said.

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In Bonta’s opinion, Trump “has greatly exceeded his authority with this order.” “And we will hold him accountable,” he said.

The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in Massachusetts, joins a similar complaint against the measure filed the day before by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other human rights organizations.

The 14th Amendment to the US Constitution was adopted in the second half of the 1800s as a result of the Civil War, in an effort to guarantee the rights of former slaves and their children.

“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to its jurisdiction, are citizens of the United States and of the state in which they reside,” it reads.

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The order signed by Trump, if upheld, stipulates a 30-day period to take effect.

During his signing, the 78-year-old president acknowledged that his action would face legal challenges. “We’ll see (…). I think we have very good fundamentals,” he commented when questioned by journalists about it.

Trump also wrongly claimed that the United States is the only country in the world that recognizes land rights.

Dozens of countries grant automatic citizenship to children born on their territory, including neighbors Canada and Mexico.

The 22 states that sued

The states involved are New Jersey, Massachusetts, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin.

Arizona, Oregon, Washington and Illinois filed another lawsuit — the fourth legal challenge that has been filed against the order.

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