Birthright citizenship: Judge blocks Trump’s ‘manifestly unconstitutional’ executive order

Seattle
CNN
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A federal judge said Thursday that President Donald Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship was “clearly unconstitutional” and issued a temporary restraining orderr to block it.

Judge John Coughenour, a Ronald Reagan appointee who sits in Seattle, granted the request by Washington Attorney General Nick Brown and three other Democratic-led states for the emergency order halting implementation of the policy for the next 14 days while there are more briefings in legal challenge.

“I’ve been on the bench for over four decades. I can’t remember another case where the question asked was as clear,” Coughenour said.

“Where were the lawyers” when the decision to sign the order was made, the judge asked. He said it “baffled” his mind that a member of the bar would argue the order was constitutional.

The Democratic-led states are seeking a temporary restraining order, arguing that Trump’s executive order is a flagrant violation of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment, which guarantees citizenship to all children born on American soil “and subject to its jurisdiction.”

An attorney for the state of Washington, Lane Polozola told the judge that “births cannot be stopped” while the court hears the case.

“Babies are being born today here, and in the plaintiff states and around the country, with a cloud cast over their citizenship,” Polozola said.

Children denied citizenship under Trump’s order will face “long-term significant negative consequences,” he added.

Polozola also argued that the Trump administration not only ignored those harms in the filings it has submitted so far in the dispute, but that harm “seems to be the purpose” of the executive order.

In addition to the impact that Trump’s order will have on their residents, Washington and the other states argue that ending birthright citizenship will burden their state programs financially and logistically, as these children are cut off from federal benefits that they would be eligible for as citizens.

The Trump administration claims that this clause “subject to its jurisdiction” allows the president to exclude children of undocumented immigrants and even children whose parents are legally present but lack permanent legal status.

Justice Department attorney Brett Shumate urged the judge to delay issuing an emergency order blocking the policy until there was more information on the policy.

“I understand your concerns,” Shumate said, but he urged the court not to make “a quick judgment on the matter.”

Shumate noted that the other cases challenging the executive order moved on a slower timeline, arguing that “imminent harm” threatens the states.

At the White House on Thursday, Trump told reporters that the administration will challenge the ruling.

A handful of other lawsuits have been filed this week against the order, including by a separate group of Democratic attorneys general, immigrant rights groups and individual plaintiffs.

During a status conference held Thursday in one of those cases, a lawyer for the Justice Department told a federal judge in Maryland that he was not aware of any federal agencies that have taken steps to begin enforcing the order next month. That challenge was brought by immigrant rights groups and pregnant women in the state whose babies could be affected by the order.

“The executive order was issued three days ago at a time of change of administration. And so it’s very early for the agencies to develop the policies that would be necessary to implement it, the attorney, Brad Rosenberg, told U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman.

The judge is to consider a request by the plaintiffs to temporarily block the order at a hearing on February 5.

Meanwhile, in a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and other civil liberties and immigration rights groups in New Hampshire, a federal judge there has set a Feb. 10 hearing to consider the groups’ request to block the order from taking effect until further notice . .

This story has been updated with further developments.

CNN’s Devan Cole contributed to this report.