California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging President Donald Trump's executive order that seeks to end birthright citizenship for children born to parents who are not legal U.S. residents.
The lawsuit, filed in the District of Massachusetts, leads an 18-state coalition arguing that Trump's order violates the 14th Amendment and the Immigration and Nationality Act. The states are seeking an immediate preliminary injunction to block the order from taking effect on February 19.
"The President has overstepped his authority by a mile, and we will hold him accountable," Bonta said at a press conference announcing the legal action. "This isn't some theoretical legal disagreement. If allowed to stand, this order would endanger thousands of U.S. citizens who will be born in the next year."
The executive order, issued within hours of Trump taking office for his second term, directs federal agencies to deny citizenship rights to American-born children whose parents are not lawful residents. Under the order, these children would be denied Social Security numbers and U.S. passports.
According to state officials, the order would affect approximately 24,500 children born annually in California alone. These children would lose eligibility for federal benefits programs and, upon reaching adulthood, would be unable to vote, serve on juries, or run for certain offices.
California Speaker of the Assembly, Robert Rivas said overturning the more than century old precedent was personal.
“I am a first-generation Californian from a family of immigrant farmworkers," he said. "My grandfather came here because he believed in the California Dream and wanted to provide a better life for our family. Today, California has one of the largest economies on Earth because of immigrants who helped build our state. From the ag fields to our boardrooms, immigrants help driveAmerica’s prosperity. People like my grandparents, who played by the rules, paid taxes, and did everything they could to uplift our community. I will always fight for immigrants, especially children because America is a nation of immigrants, and I believe in our country’s promise.”
Bonta emphasized the order's violation of 125 years of Supreme Court precedent, specifically citing the 1898 case of United States v. Wong Kim Ark, where the court affirmed birthright citizenship for children born to immigrant parents. Wong Kim Ark was a San Francisco native who successfully challenged the government's denial of his citizenship after a trip to China.
The coalition, led by California, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, includes 15 other states and the city of San Francisco. The attorneys general argue the order would force states to risk federal funding for vital programs like Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program, which are contingent on participants' citizenship status.
"We're a nation of immigrants. It's in our DNA, especially here in California," Bonta said, noting that the state is home to 11 million immigrants who make up nearly 30% of its population.
Bonta was joined by other state officials including San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu
"Overturning this 127 year precedent is contrary to our American values, and a ruthless attack on newborns and future generations of Americans," said Chiu. " Ending birthright citizenship would impede their integration and their assimilation into society, their educational and economic future, and that hurts all of us. To deny some children the basic rights that other children in our country will create a permanent, multi generational underclass of those who will have been born in our country but will never have lived anywhere else, and be effectively stateless. These children will not be able to naturalize or obtain citizenship from another country. They will live under constant threat of deportation, and as they age, they won't be able to work lawfully or vote. They will have limited ability to travel and will be challenged in accessing health care."
The lawsuit seeks to prevent what Bonta called "an un-American executive order" from disrupting vital public health and federal benefit programs while the case proceeds through the courts.
