Donald Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to attend oral arguments at the Supreme Court. On Wednesday, he arrived to witness arguments in the birthright citizenship case, also known as Trump v. Barbara.
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments on an executive order by the U.S. president. It was anticipated that the order could strip the constitutional guarantee of citizenship from people born in America. The immigration status of their parents, however, would not play a role in determining their citizenship.
That may well be the case, but if the conservative Supreme Court with 3 Trump judges rules the 14th Amendment supports birthright citizenship, isn’t the only way to repeal the 14th either 2/3rds vote in Congress or 70% or so of States supporting? Either way pretty slim chance.
— Keith Read (@kr548785) April 2, 2026
While Trump’s presence in the courtroom drew significant attention, he left within 15 minutes. His exit came shortly after an American Civil Liberties Union lawyer argued against the order. He then took to Truth Social and posted a message. Trump wrote, “We are the only Country in the World STUPID enough to allow ‘Birthright’ Citizenship.”
The Supreme Court hearing was discussed on a recent episode of Brian Tyler Cohen’s podcast, which featured a law professor from the University of Michigan, Leah Litman. The two discussed not only the legal technicalities of the case, but also how Trump’s appearance felt more like a show of authority than for any substantive reason.
Litman noted that one of the key challenges to the case is the existence of the 14th Amendment itself. It states that U.S. citizenship is granted to all born or naturalized in the U.S., including formerly enslaved people. The amendment guarantees due process and equal protection under the law and prohibits states from restricting basic rights.
Furthermore, Litman said that given the history of past Supreme Court rulings, it is still possible that the court could issue a ruling in favor of Trump’s executive order. If that were to happen, it could lead to the possibility of limiting constitutional protections, depending on how the ruling is interpreted.
Highlighting her concerns about the court, Litman remarked, “It’s another pretty damning indictment of this court. And the fact that any justice would embrace this argument, which is so soundly inconsistent with text, history, precedent, every single source of authority and law you can imagine. It’s hard to come up with. Yet another example of how the Supreme Court could prove itself to be more of a clown show.”
Key Justices Appear Skeptical of Limiting Birthright Citizenship
President Trump appeared in court, watching as members of the court’s conservative majority raised questions about his efforts to limit birthright citizenship.https://t.co/QYdK21SNeI
— Centro Studi Medì. Migrazioni nel Mediterraneo (@CSMediGenova) April 2, 2026
It should be noted that during the hearing, the Supreme Court appeared somewhat skeptical of Trump’s executive order. A majority of the justices were unconvinced that the U.S. could stop granting citizenship to children of immigrants without documentation or to children of temporary U.S. visitors.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has defended the move as necessary to limit illegal immigration on U.S. soil. Opponents, however, argue that overturning a longstanding constitutional amendment would undermine the very foundation of U.S. immigration law.
As many question the legitimacy of the Trump v. Barbara case reaching the Supreme Court, the justices are scheduled to issue their decision by June.
