Supreme Court to Hear Major Birthright Citizenship Case

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear one of the most significant immigration cases in decades, a new podcast from the Center for Immigration Studies explores who is entitled to American citizenship at birth and which branch of government has the authority to define it.

On April 1, the Court will hear Trump v. Barbara, a case challenging Executive Order 14160, which seeks to deny automatic citizenship to children born in the U.S. to parents who are in the country illegally or temporarily.

In this episode, Hans von Spakovsky, Legal Fellow at Advancing American Freedom, and Andrew Arthur, the Center’s Fellow in Law and Policy, examine the central constitutional question: what does the phrase “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” in the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution actually mean?

They argue that the framers intended citizenship to depend on political allegiance, not simply place of birth, pointing to early interpretations and contrasting them with the broader reading adopted in the late nineteenth century in United States v. Wong Kim Ark.

The Court could affirm the current interpretation of the doctrine, defer to executive interpretation, or return the issue to Congress.

"This will be one of the most consequential decisions in years,” von Spakovsky notes.

In the closing commentary, Mark Krikorian, executive director and podcast host, highlights a separate upcoming Supreme Court case involving Temporary Protected Status (TPS), where the statute states clearly that there is no judicial review of TPS designations. What are the limits to judicial review and will the judiciary allow the executive to carry out immigration law as written by Congress?

Host

Mark Krikorian is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guests

Hans von Spakovsky is a Legal Fellow at Advancing American Freedom.

Andrew Arthur is a Fellow in Law and Policy at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Related

Birthright Citizenship: A Fundamental Misunderstanding of the 14th Amendment

The Best Aspects of the ‘Birthright Citizenship’ Debate

Births to Illegal Immigrants and Long-Term Temporary Visitors

The Supreme Court Takes Up a Vital, Slam-Dunk Immigration Case [TPS]

Intro Montage

Voices in the opening montage:

• Sen. Barack Obama at a 2005 press conference.
• Sen. John McCain in a 2010 election ad.
• President Lyndon Johnson, upon signing the 1965 Immigration Act.
• Booker T. Washington, reading in 1908 from his 1895 Atlanta Exposition speech.
• Laraine Newman as a "Conehead" on SNL in 1977.
• Hillary Clinton in a 2003 radio interview.
• Cesar Chavez in a 1974 interview.
• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking to reporters in 2019.
• Prof. George Borjas in a 2016 C-SPAN appearance.
• Sen. Jeff Sessions in 2008 comments on the Senate floor.
• Candidate Trump in 2015 campaign speech.
• Charlton Heston in "Planet of the Apes".