Federal judge to hear lawsuit challenging Trump's executive order on birthright citizenship

Source: Scripps News

Posted 11:14 AM, Jan 22, 2025


After President Donald Trump signed an executive order that could revoke U.S. citizenship for some children born in the U.S., a federal judge will hear a lawsuit filed by multiple states. U.S. District Judge John Coughenour has scheduled a 10 a.m. PT hearing on Thursday to consider issuing a temporary restraining order against the Trump administration from enforcing the executive order. Coughenour is an appointee of former President Ronald Reagan.

President Trump's executive order is scheduled to go into effect Feb. 19. The order would not impact the legal status of children born prior to Feb. 19, 2025. Currently, virtually all children born in the U.S. are granted citizenship regardless of their parents' immigration status. The order would revoke citizenship for children of those in the U.S. illegally.

Coughenour is hearing a lawsuit brought by Washington Attorney General Nick Brown. Washington was joined by Oregon, Arizona and Illinois in its suit. Overall, 22 states have filed lawsuits against the Trump administration to stop the order from being enacted. The American Civil Liberties Union also filed suit against the Trump administration involving the executive order.

“We started preparing for this scenario more than a year ago,” Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson said. “The excellent team at the Attorney General’s Office is ready to fight this unlawful action, and they will have the full support of my administration.”

Read more: https://www.scrippsnews.com/politics/immigration/federal-judge-to-hear-lawsuit-challenging-trumps-executive-order-on-birthright-citizenship

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This multi-state suit was filed in the federal court's Western District of Washington (state). That falls under the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals as FYI -



(9th Circuit = 16 (D) & 13 (R) appointees (not counting the senior judges that are a mix of 14 (D)s & 9 (R)s))