A federal judge has stopped President Donald Trump’s attempt to end birthright citizenship, at least temporarily. Birthright citizenship is the rule that says anyone born in the U.S. automatically becomes a citizen.
Trump signed an executive order to cancel this rule, but Judge John C. Coughenour ruled on Thursday that the order cannot go into effect just yet.
Trump’s plan was supposed to start on February 19, but 18 state attorneys general (all Democrats) filed lawsuits to challenge it earlier this week. They also asked the court to act quickly and block the order before it takes effect.
During a court hearing in Seattle, a lawyer from the Justice Department, Brett Shumate, began arguing that Trump’s order was legal. However, Judge Coughenour quickly interrupted him.
“Is this order constitutional?” the judge asked. He then added, “This is a blatantly unconstitutional order.”
Coughenour strongly criticized the order, saying it made no sense and violated the Constitution. He said he couldn’t understand how any lawyer could confidently defend it.
Trump signed the order on his first day as president, making it one of his top priorities in cracking down on immigration.
In addition to this, Trump has also ordered 1,500 troops to the U.S. border to stop illegal immigration. Reports suggest the actual number of troops deployed could go as high as 10,000.
