LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JANUARY 25: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a rally at Circa Resort & Casino on January 25, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The event focused on Trump’s first week in office, including his proposed policy to eliminate taxes on tips for service industry employees.
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Pregnant women sue Donald Trump over birthright citizenship executive order

A group of five pregnant women has joined the chorus of voices opposed to President Donald Trump’s challenge to birthright citizenship, as protected in the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

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In a lawsuit — filed in Maryland along with Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) and Asylum Seeker Advocacy Project (ASAP) — the women allege Trump’s executive order violates the 14th Amendment, which states, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.” 

The five women named as plaintiffs in the CASA/ASAP suit are migrants, and through the executive order, Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship, Trump seeks to end birthright citizenship for pregnant women in the U.S., documented or otherwise. Trump’s order states birthright citizenship would still apply to children of fathers who are citizens or who are permanent residents of the United States.

Birthright citizenship is a “long-settled law”

via Popular Liberal/X

But according to the CASA/ASAP lawsuit, which names Trump and other Trump administration officials, “The Executive Order violates this long-settled law. It denies citizenship to children born to mothers,” whose presence in the country is either unlawful or lawful but temporary, and whose father is neither a citizen nor a lawful permanent resident, “even though those children are plainly “‘subject to the jurisdiction’ of the United States and entitled to citizenship by birth,” the suit says.

If the executive order is allowed to take effect, the suit says, the citizenship status of thousands of children in the country will be thrown into doubt, including “the children of Individual Plaintiffs and Members.” The suit adds, “The Executive Order threatens these newborns’ identity as United States citizens and interferes with their enjoyment of the full privileges, rights, and benefits that come with U.S. citizenship, including calling into question their ability to remain in their country of birth.”

Speaking with NBC Washington, Monica, from Venezuela, a plaintiff in the suit who is 12 weeks pregnant, said, “I should be worried about the health of my child. I should be thinking about [their immigration status] primarily. Instead, my husband and I are stressed. We’re anxious and we’re depressed.”

Other lawsuits and challenges

via Face the Nation/X

The aforementioned lawsuit is just one of several suits filed in response to Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order. One other, in Washington State, was filed by three pregnant women who are not U.S. citizens, along with the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project. Washington Attorney General Nick Brown and other state attorneys general have also sued to stop Trump’s executive order, saying it’s unconstitutional, according to Seattle’s King 5. After the Washington State suit was filed, a federal judge blocked Trump’s order set to take effect 30 days after it was signed.

According to Forbes, the Trump administration says its 14th Amendment interpretation is correct. According to the fringe legal theory, “subject to the jurisdiction thereof,” as stated in the amendment, excludes undocumented immigrants or immigrants who are in the U.S. temporarily. Responding to the Washington State suit, Trump’s Department of Justice said, “We look forward to presenting a full merits argument to the Court and to the American people, who are desperate to see our Nation’s laws enforced.”

But referring to the CASA/ASAP suit, CASA’s General Counsel Nicholas Katz, said on CASA’s site, “This Executive Order undermines the very fabric of our democracy and represents a direct assault on the constitution.” Katz added, “By attempting to deny U.S. citizenship to children born within our borders, based solely on the immigration status of their parents, President Trump is seeking to upend centuries of history and established legal protections through executive fiat.  This will not stand.”


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Will Kennedy
William Kennedy is a full-time freelance content writer and journalist in Eugene, OR. William covered true crime, among other topics for Grunge.com. He currently covers true crime for We Got This Covered and The Mary Sue. He also writes about live music for the Eugene Weekly, where his beat also includes arts and culture, food, and current events. He lives with his wife, daughter, and two cats, who all politely accommodate his obsession with Doctor Who and The New Yorker.