Trump lashes out at Supreme Court conservatives “asking real bad questions”

As the Supreme Court weighs whether or not to allow President Donald Trump to change how birthright citizenship works, he lashed out Tuesday at the conservative justices he nominated to the bench.

The comments made on CNBC were not the first time Trump has criticized Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh, all of whom he nominated during his first term, and has suggested during his second that they should vote in his favor.

“Now they have birthright citizenship, they’ll probably rule against us,” Trump said. “No country in the world has it. It’s horrible for our country, and I just see it, you know. I see some of these Republicans that are nominated by me asking real bad questions—and looks like maybe we’re gonna lose that one too.”

In his comments, Trump repeated a long-debunked claim that the U.S. is the only country with birthright citizenship. Multiple countries have automatic citizenship for anyone born on their soil.

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on Trump’s executive order aiming to restrict birthright citizenship to babies of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents in early April, with a ruling expected in a few months.

Why Is the Supreme Court Reviewing Birthright Citizenship?

At the center of the Supreme Court case on birthright citizenship is whether or not Trump can alter how it works.

As it stands, the 14th Amendment states that “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.”

This language became the legal foundation of birthright citizenship, affirming the rights of formerly enslaved people and anyone else born on U.S. soil.

Trump has long argued that the 14th Amendment’s Citizenship Clause has been misinterpreted and that children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants or temporary visa holders should not automatically receive citizenship, because they are not legal, long-term residents.

In an executive order following his inauguration, Trump tried to restrict the right, prompting legal challenges.

What Did Supreme Court Justices Ask?

During a roughly two-hour hearing on April 1, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments from the Trump administration and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

Most of the debate was around language of the 14th Amendment and the two sides’ interpretations of what “domiciled” meant when referring to parents.

While liberal justices largely appeared in favor of ruling against the Trump administration, some conservative justices also showed skepticism of the government’s position.

Barrett, for example, questioned whether amending the right would create “a new kind of citizenship” and appeared dissatisfied with the government’s response when asking whether babies dropped off at hospitals with no obvious immigration status would be considered citizens.

Solicitor General D. John Sauer’s answers also drew questions from Gorsuch, while Kavanaugh said Congress might have worded things differently in laws enacted in 1940 and 1952 if lawmakers wanted to make clear that children of people here illegally or temporarily were not entitled to citizenship.

Chief Justice John Roberts, appointed by President George W Bush, also pushed Sauer on the issue of the phrase “the jurisdiction thereof” in the 14th Amendment, which administration officials argue excludes undocumented immigrants.

“You obviously put a lot of weight on subject ‘to the jurisdiction thereof,’ but the examples you give to support that strike me as very quirky,” Roberts told Sauer. “You know, children of ambassadors, children of enemies during a hostile invasion, children on warships, and then you expand it to a whole class of illegal aliens are here in the country. I’m not quite sure how you can get to that big group from such tiny and sort of idiosyncratic examples.”

Trump left after Sauer had given his thoroughly questioned testimony, later posting on Truth Social, again, that, “We are the only Country in the World STUPID enough to allow ‘Birthright’ Citizenship!”

What Happens Next

A decision from the court is not expected until at least June. If it rules against the Trump administration, birthright citizenship would remain as it has been for decades. A ruling in favor of the changes could have widespread ripple effects on how births are registered in the future, and whether undocumented immigrant parents choose to seek health care.