SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — The Supreme Court's upcoming decision on birthright citizenship could have significant consequences for families in San Diego's binational region.
Birthright citizenship stems from the 14th Amendment, which grants U.S. citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil. President Trump signed an executive order on the first day of his second term attempting to change that. The order would prevent children born in the U.S. from automatically receiving citizenship if neither parent was a U.S. citizen or permanent resident at the time of the child's birth. The president has said the order would only apply to children born after it takes effect.
A legal expert says there is a gray area in how the court could rule. If the court sides with President Trump, the outcome depends on the specific language used in the ruling. The court could either direct that the executive order's own terms govern who is affected, or it could rule that anyone is subject to the order regardless of when they were born.
The legal expert also said he believes this case — and others expected to be decided next Monday — challenges the checks and balances laid out in the Constitution. He added that a ruling in Trump's favor would expand the power of executive orders.
"It would vest that power in any president. And it means that when you have a shift of party, you're going to have, for example, wholesale firings of members of independent agencies and potentially a whole bunch of executive orders that are issued that address a variety of other issues," he said.
Lower courts paused the executive order after several legal challenges, which ultimately brought the case to the Supreme Court. Earlier this year, both liberal and conservative justices cast doubts about the order during oral arguments.
The next day opinions are scheduled to drop is next Monday. At least one more day of rulings is expected to follow to wrap up this Supreme Court term.
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