A federal judge in Massachusetts on Thursday blocked President Donald Trump’s executive order to terminate birthright citizenship, marking the fourth time the policy was blocked by a judge from taking effect.
In a 31-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin stated that two lawsuits—one filed by 18 states and the District of Columbia and the other by nonprofit organizations—are likely to succeed on the merits of their claims that implementing the order would cause irreparable harm. The plaintiffs have argued that the order violates the Citizenship Clause of the 14th Amendment.
“The record before the court establishes that children born without a recognized or lawful status face barriers to accessing critical health care, among other services, along with the threat of removal to countries they have never lived in and possible family separation. That is irreparable harm,” Sorokin stated.
“It is difficult to imagine a government or public interest that could outweigh the harms established by the plaintiffs here,” the judge added.
Trump’s order on birthright citizenship, issued on Jan. 20, stated that the 14th Amendment’s citizenship clause does not extend citizenship universally to everyone born within the United States. […]
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