Latest news with #LeoSorokin
Japan Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
U.S. judge reaffirms injunction on Trump birthright citizenship order
A U.S. federal judge in Massachusetts ruled on Friday that a nationwide injunction he issued in February that blocked President Donald Trump's executive order limiting birthright citizenship should remain in place. In a written ruling, U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin in Boston said his earlier nationwide injunction was the only way to provide complete relief to a coalition of Democratic-led states that brought the lawsuit before him, rejecting the Trump administration's argument that a narrower ruling was warranted because of a June decision from the U.S. Supreme Court. Sorokin wrote that the evidence before him "does not support a finding that any narrower option would feasibly and adequately protect the plaintiffs from the injuries they have shown they are likely to suffer if the unlawful policy announced in the Executive Order takes effect during the pendency of this lawsuit." White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement that "courts are misinterpreting the purpose and the text" of the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment. "We look forward to being vindicated on appeal," Jackson said. New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, a Democrat, said in a statement that the states were thrilled with the decision. "American-born babies are American, just as they have been at every other time in our nation's history. The president cannot change that legal rule with the stroke of a pen.' The Supreme Court's June 27 ruling in litigation over Trump's birthright citizenship order limited the ability of judges to issue so-called "universal" injunctions — in which a single district court judge can block enforcement of a federal policy across the country — and directed lower courts that had blocked the Republican president's policy nationally to reconsider the scope of their orders. But the ruling contained exceptions allowing courts to potentially still block it across the country again. That has already allowed a judge in New Hampshire to once again halt Trump's order from taking effect by issuing an injunction in a nationwide class action of children who would be denied citizenship under the policy. A federal appeals court in California on Wednesday said Trump's executive order violated the citizenship clause of the U.S. Constitution's 14th Amendment by denying citizenship to many persons born in the U.S., and blocked its enforcement nationwide. Trump signed the executive order on Jan. 20, his first day back in office, as part of his crackdown on immigration. The executive order directed federal agencies to refuse to recognize the citizenship of U.S.-born children who do not have at least one parent who is an American citizen or lawful permanent resident, also known as a "green card" holder. It was swiftly challenged in court by Democratic attorneys general from 22 states and immigrant rights advocates who argued it was unconstitutional. Last week, the states had argued at a hearing before Sorokin that a nationwide injunction was essential. They said restricting birthright citizenship in some states but not others would make it difficult to administer federal benefits programs like Medicaid. A patchwork approach would also lead to confusion among immigrant parents and a surge of people moving to states where Trump's executive order is on hold, straining resources, they argued. The Justice Department had countered that the states, by continuing to advocate for universal relief, had failed to come to grips with the Supreme Court's decision.
CTV News
4 days ago
- Politics
- CTV News
U.S. judge blocks Trump's birthright citizenship restrictions in third ruling since high court decision
Demonstrators holds up a banner during a citizenship rally outside of the Supreme Court in Washington, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) BOSTON — A U.S. federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from ending birthright citizenship for the children of parents who are in the U.S. illegally, issuing the third court ruling blocking the birthright order nationwide since a key Supreme Court decision in June. U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin, joining another district court as well as an appellate panel of judges, found that a nationwide injunction granted to more than a dozen states remains in force under an exception to the Supreme Court ruling. That decision restricted the power of lower-court judges to issue nationwide injunctions. The states have argued Trump's birthright citizenship order is blatantly unconstitutional and threatens millions of dollars for health insurance services that are contingent on citizenship status. The issue is expected to move quickly back to the nation's highest court. New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, who helped lead the lawsuit before Sorokin, said in a statement he was 'thrilled the district court again barred President Trump's flagrantly unconstitutional birthright citizenship order from taking effect anywhere.' 'American-born babies are American, just as they have been at every other time in our Nation's history,' he added. 'The President cannot change that legal rule with the stroke of a pen.' Lawyers for the government had argued Sorokin should narrow the reach of his earlier ruling granting a preliminary injunction, saying it should be 'tailored to the States' purported financial injuries.' Sorokin said a patchwork approach to the birthright order would not protect the states in part because a substantial number of people move between states. He also blasted the Trump administration, saying it had failed to explain how a narrower injunction would work. 'That is, they have never addressed what renders a proposal feasible or workable, how the defendant agencies might implement it without imposing material administrative or financial burdens on the plaintiffs, or how it squares with other relevant federal statutes,' the judge wrote. 'In fact, they have characterized such questions as irrelevant to the task the Court is now undertaking. The defendants' position in this regard defies both law and logic.' Sorokin acknowledged his order would not be the last word on birthright citizenship. Trump and his administration 'are entitled to pursue their interpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment, and no doubt the Supreme Court will ultimately settle the question,' Sorokin wrote. 'But in the meantime, for purposes of this lawsuit at this juncture, the Executive Order is unconstitutional.' The administration has not yet appealed any of the recent court rulings. Trump's efforts to deny citizenship to children born to parents who are in the country illegally or temporarily will remain blocked unless and until the Supreme Court says otherwise. An email asking for the White House's response to the ruling was sent Friday. A federal judge in New Hampshire issued a ruling earlier this month prohibiting Trump's executive order from taking effect nationwide in a new class-action lawsuit. U.S. District Judge Joseph LaPlante in New Hampshire had paused his own decision to allow for the Trump administration to appeal, but with no appeal filed in the last week, his order went into effect. On Wednesday, a San Francisco-based appeals court found the president's executive order unconstitutional and affirmed a lower court's nationwide block. A Maryland-based judge said this week that she would do the same if an appeals court signed off. The justices ruled last month that lower courts generally can't issue nationwide injunctions, but it didn't rule out other court orders that could have nationwide effects, including in class-action lawsuits and those brought by states. The Supreme Court did not decide whether the underlying citizenship order is constitutional. Plaintiffs in the Boston case earlier argued that the principle of birthright citizenship is 'enshrined in the Constitution,' and that Trump does not have the authority to issue the order, which they called a 'flagrantly unlawful attempt to strip hundreds of thousands of American-born children of their citizenship based on their parentage.' They also argue that Trump's order halting automatic citizenship for babies born to people in the U.S. illegally or temporarily would cost states funding they rely on to 'provide essential services' — from foster care to health care for low-income children, to 'early interventions for infants, toddlers, and students with disabilities.' At the heart of the lawsuits is the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which was ratified in 1868 after the Civil War and the Dred Scott Supreme Court decision. That decision found that Scott, an enslaved man, wasn't a citizen despite having lived in a state where slavery was outlawed. The Trump administration has asserted that children of noncitizens are not 'subject to the jurisdiction' of the United States and therefore not entitled to citizenship. By Michael Casey. Associated Press reporter Mark Sherman in Washington contributed.
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Trump birthright citizenship order blocked in third ruling since US Supreme Court decision
A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from ending birthright citizenship for the children of parents who are in the US illegally, issuing the third court ruling blocking the birthright order nationwide since a key Supreme Court decision in June. Advertisement US District Judge Leo Sorokin, joining another district court as well as an appellate panel of judges, found that a nationwide injunction granted to more than a dozen states remains in force under an exception to the Supreme Court ruling. That decision restricted the power of lower court judges to issue nationwide injunctions. The states have argued Trump's birthright citizenship order is blatantly unconstitutional and threatens millions of dollars for health insurance services that are contingent on citizenship status. The issue is expected to move quickly back to the nation's highest court. New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin, who helped lead the lawsuit before Sorokin, said in a statement he was 'thrilled the district court again barred President Trump's flagrantly unconstitutional birthright citizenship order from taking effect anywhere'. 'American-born babies are American, just as they have been at every other time in our nation's history,' he added. 'The president cannot change that legal rule with the stroke of a pen.' US President Donald Trump signs an executive order on birthright citizenship in the Oval Office in January. Photo: AP Lawyers for the government had argued Sorokin should narrow the reach of his earlier ruling granting a preliminary injunction, saying it should be 'tailored to the states' purported financial injuries'.
Reuters
4 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
US judge reaffirms nationwide injunction blocking Trump executive order on birthright citizenship
WASHINGTON, July 25 (Reuters) - A federal judge in Massachusetts ruled on Friday that a nationwide injunction he issued in February that blocked President Donald Trump's executive order limiting birthright citizenship should remain in place. In a written ruling, U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin said his earlier nationwide injunction was the only way to provide complete relief to a coalition of states that brought the lawsuit before him, rejecting the Trump administration's argument that a narrower ruling was warranted because of a June decision from the U.S. Supreme Court.
Bloomberg
4 days ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Trump Birthright Order Blocked Again in New Win for Blue States
A federal judge in Boston issued the second nationwide block of President Donald Trump's birthright citizenship limits this month as the lawsuits continue, in another sign that a recent US Supreme Court decision restricting 'universal injunctions' is having limited impact on the dispute. US Judge Leo Sorokin said Friday that a nationwide injunction pausing Trump's order while the case brought by Democratic-led states proceeds is the only way to offer them full protection. The judge said his actions are in-line with the Supreme Court's findings.
