A federal judge has been asked to clarify whether a new executive order by President Donald Trump, aimed at limiting birthright citizenship, is blocked by the Supreme Court’s previous ruling on the issue.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), acting for a class of immigrant families that it says could be affected, filed a motion in federal district court in New Hampshire on Tuesday. The request asks for a declaratory order that the second executive order conflicts with the Supreme Court’s decision from June, when Trump’s first attempt to end birthright citizenship was rejected.
Legal challenge in New Hampshire
The ACLU argues that the Supreme Court left no room for further carve-outs beyond the specific groups it identified. It is asking the court to block the new order and to state that Trump cannot reduce birthright citizenship for the class members by relying on the latest executive action or any similar measures.
The Supreme Court’s ruling, the ACLU said in its filing, reaffirmed the constitutional rule that citizenship is determined at birth by where a person is born, and that any exceptions must follow the court’s stated categories.
What the second order targets
Trump’s second birthright order, signed last week, was issued in direct response to the June decision. It seeks to deny citizenship to children born on U.S. soil in a range of situations Trump described as involving exclusions from automatic citizenship.
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The order would apply to children described as born to an “alien enemy” or a “foreign government employee”. It would also cover children born to a parent who Trump’s order says “engaged in a commercial transaction” to obtain citizenship. A further provision would deny citizenship to children born in a territory where citizenship is not conferred by statute.
The ACLU contends that these categories are not recognised in the Constitution or in federal citizenship law.
Supreme Court decision and the scope of exceptions
In June, the Supreme Court issued a 6-3 decision addressing Trump’s first bid to narrow birthright citizenship. Writing for the majority, Chief Justice John Roberts said the determining factor for citizenship was “fixed by the place of nativity, irrespective of parentage”.
The court also confirmed four categories of children born on U.S. soil who would not automatically become citizens: children of ambassadors, children born on foreign public ships, children born to enemies occupying American territory, and members of Indian tribes.
Justice Brett Kavanaugh, concurring, said the decision treated those four exceptions as a closed set. He added that the ruling had been consistently understood in that way, leaving no basis for additional exceptions arising from later developments.
The Trump administration argues that the categories listed in the second executive order fall within acceptable exemptions, using the legal interpretation presented in the Supreme Court’s decision.
Order scheduled to begin
Trump’s executive order is scheduled to take effect on 6 September unless a court blocks it.
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12 August 2026
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