Overview

• A 2-1 panel of the Ninth Circuit affirmed that President Trump’s directive eliminating birthright citizenship is unconstitutional and blocked it nationwide.
• Judges held the executive order violates the clear text of the Fourteenth Amendment by denying citizenship to anyone born in the United States and subject to its jurisdiction.
• The court upheld Judge John C. Coughenour’s preliminary injunction and found no abuse of discretion in issuing a universal block.
• The panel recognized that Washington, Illinois, Oregon and Arizona would suffer irreparable economic harm from lost federal reimbursements and increased administrative costs.
• With the injunction secured, the administration may seek an en banc rehearing in the Ninth Circuit or appeal directly to the U.S. Supreme Court.