Trump Says US Only Country 'Stupid Enough to Allow Birthright Citizenship'

The nation's highest court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, heard more than two hours of arguments in the Trump administration's appeal of a lower court's decision that blocked the executive order to restrict the constitutional guarantee.

Rachel Acenas

Published: 4/1/2026, 4:32:26 PM EDT

Trump Says US Only Country 'Stupid Enough to Allow Birthright Citizenship' — People hold a sign as they participate in a protest outside the U.S. Supreme Court over President Donald Trump’s move to end birthright citizenship as the court hears arguments over the order in Washington on May 15, 2025. (Drew Angerer/AFP via Getty Images)

President Donald Trump shared his first reaction after attending the Supreme Court’s oral arguments on birthright citizenship Wednesday morning, expressing frustration after conservative and liberal justices appeared to cast doubt on his efforts to limit the constitutional guarantee.

Trump sat in the first row of the public gallery, becoming the first sitting president to observe an oral argument at the Supreme Court.

"We are the only Country in the World STUPID enough to allow 'Birthright' Citizenship!" Trump wrote in a Truth Social post after oral arguments concluded.

The citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment states that anyone born or naturalized in the United States is generally an American citizen.

But the Trump administration has argued that granting citizenship to virtually anyone born on U.S. soil has created incentives for illegal immigration and led to a popular practice known as "birth tourism," in which foreigners travel to the country to give birth and secure citizenship for their children. On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order that directed U.S. agencies not ‌to recognize the citizenship of children born in the United States if neither parent is an American citizen or legal permanent resident, also referred to as a "green card" holder.

U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer reiterated Trump's stance that the 14th Amendment has never been interpreted to extend citizenship universally, adding that unrestricted birthright citizenship contradicts the policies of any modern nation.

"It operates as a powerful pull factor for illegal immigration and rewards illegal aliens who not only violate the immigration laws but also jump in front of those who follow the rules," Sauer said.

Chief Justice John Roberts suggested that Sauer was relying on "quirky" exceptions to citizenship to make a broad argument about individuals who are in the country illegally, saying: “I’m not quite sure how you can get to that big group from such tiny and sort of idiosyncratic examples."

American Civil Liberties Union attorney Cecillia Wang argued that Trump's executive order was unlawful and stressed that birthright citizenship is enshrined in the 14th Amendment.

The amendment's citizenship clause states: "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

Justice Clarence Thomas, during oral arguments, sounded the most likely among the justices to side with the president on the issue.

“How much of the debates around the 14th Amendment had anything to do with immigration?” Thomas asked, noting that the initial purpose of the act was actually to grant citizenship to black people, including freed slaves.

The justices are expected to announce their decision by the end of the term in June.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.