Trump Criticises Supreme Court Over Tariffs and Birthright Citizenship Debate

President Donald Trump has criticised the Supreme Court of the United States following a ruling against his tariff policy and amid ongoing legal scrutiny of his attempt to end birthright citizenship.

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In a social media post on Monday, Trump accused the court of failing to act in the country’s interest and urged the justices to reconsider their approach to the issue of citizenship for children born in the United States to certain non-citizens.

The president’s comments came after the court heard arguments last week on an executive order he issued seeking to limit automatic citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

Criticism following tariff ruling

Trump also expressed anger over a recent court decision that struck down his administration’s tariffs, arguing the ruling would cost the United States significant revenue.

“The country can only withstand so many bad decisions from a court that just doesn’t seem to care,” he wrote.

He claimed the judgment had deprived the government of “hundreds of billions of dollars” in potential returns tied to tariff measures he introduced during his presidency.

Trump’s remarks suggested he hopes the court will avoid blocking his order on birthright citizenship when it rules on the matter.

Push to reinterpret birthright citizenship

The executive order issued last year aims to prevent children born in the United States to immigrants without legal status or to temporary visitors from automatically receiving citizenship.

Trump has long argued that the Fourteenth Amendment, adopted after the Civil War, should apply only to children of US citizens or lawful permanent residents.

For more than a century, however, courts and government policy have interpreted the amendment to grant citizenship to nearly anyone born on US soil.

The Supreme Court heard arguments last week examining whether Trump’s order conflicts with that longstanding interpretation.

Conservative commentary enters the debate

Trump referenced commentary from Mark Levin, a conservative radio host and Fox News presenter, who questioned the historical basis for birthright citizenship during his programme on Life, Liberty & Levin.

Levin argued that the Constitution does not explicitly mention birthright citizenship and suggested that the authors of the Fourteenth Amendment intended it to apply only to certain children, excluding those of immigrants without legal status.

He also said legal debates before the court had become overly complex, criticising some justices for raising policy questions rather than focusing on constitutional interpretation.

Questions raised during Supreme Court hearing

During oral arguments, several justices explored how Trump’s order might work in practice.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson asked whether mothers might be required to provide documentation at hospitals to determine a newborn’s citizenship status.

Justice Neil Gorsuch questioned how the policy would classify Native Americans under the proposed framework.

The government’s lawyer, Solicitor General D. John Sauer, initially appeared uncertain about how the order would address that scenario.

Trump has urged the court to reconsider the traditional reading of the Fourteenth Amendment, saying such a decision would benefit the United States.

In his post, the president called on the justices to apply what he described as “common sense” when ruling on the issue.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 7 April 2026

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