Birthright citizenship ruling: US officials, lawmakers and advocates react

Published 30 June 2026 · us

Reaction is rolling in after the United States Supreme Court ruled against the administration of US President Donald Trump, upholding the practice of automatically granting

Reaction is rolling in after the United States Supreme Court ruled against the administration of US President Donald Trump, upholding the practice of automatically granting citizenship to nearly all individuals born in the US. The 6-3 ruling on birthright citizenship represents a major rebuke to one of Trump’s most ambitious efforts to overhaul longstanding US immigration practices. The majority argued that birthright citizenship is rooted in both the US Constitution and longstanding practice dating back to English common law, rejecting the Trump administration’s assertion that it should apply only to US citizens and permanent residents. Still, three justices sided with the Trump administration, arguing the 14th Amendment of the Constitution does not clearly grant the right to the children of all immigrants in the country. Here’s how Trump officials, US lawmakers and advocates responded to the ruling. Trump and his top officials Stephen Miller, Trump’s top adviser and the architect of his hardline approach to immigration, decried the ruling as “one of the most destructive and outrageous decisions” in the history of the country’s top court. “American citizenship is not the birthright of the world,” he wrote in a post on X. “It belongs only and solely to Americans. No provision of the Constitution can be read to require our national self-obliteration.” Trump, meanwhile, called the decision “too bad for our country”.

In a post on his Truth Social account, he called on Congress to pass laws restricting birthright citizenship. The president maintained that there are ways to do so that would not involve an amendment to the US Constitution, which would require a two-thirds supermajority in both chambers of Congress. However, legal experts have noted that given the justices’ emphasis on the 14th Amendment in the ruling, a constitutional amendment or, at the very least, a rehearing of the case would be required. It is exceedingly rare for the top court to revisit cases, typically requiring a new legal theory to be put forward, although a bill passed by Congress seeking to end birthright citizenship could lay the groundwork to bring the issue back to the Supreme Court. “Congress should start TODAY to work on ending expensive and unfair to our Country, Birthright Citizenship. They will have my Complete and Total Support!” Trump wrote. Separately, the US Department of Justice said it will prioritise the prosecutions of so-called “birth tourism schemes across the country” following the ruling. “Actors seeking to exploit loopholes to obtain automatic citizenship for their children automatic citizenship for their children pose a national security threat and will be brought to justice,” it said.