Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek says “President Trump cannot just erase a constitutional right with the stroke of a pen” after he renews effort to restrict birthright citizenship

Portland, OREGON – “The Supreme Court has ruled on this, and yet he persists,” Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek said earlier this week. “President Trump cannot just erase a constitutional right with the stroke of a pen. That’s not how our democracy works.”

Kotek was responding to President Donald Trump’s renewed effort to restrict birthright citizenship, coming just weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected his earlier attempt to deny automatic citizenship to certain children born in the United States.

Trump signed two new executive orders on Aug. 6 that sought to narrow the circumstances under which children born in the U.S. would automatically receive citizenship. The new orders represented a different approach from Trump’s original executive order, which attempted to deny citizenship to children born to parents who were in the country illegally or on temporary visas, COD reported.

The Supreme Court ruled June 30 that the administration could not implement Trump’s broader birthright citizenship order. The 6-3 decision reaffirmed longstanding constitutional protections under the 14th Amendment, which provides that people born or naturalized in the United States and subject to its jurisdiction are citizens.

Trump’s latest orders, however, attempted to target narrower categories.

One order focused on children born to parents accused of obtaining tourist visas through fraud for the purpose of giving birth in the United States. Another sought to exclude children from automatic citizenship in circumstances involving parents described by the administration as “alien enemies” or members of foreign terrorist organizations.

Trump defended the new actions after the Supreme Court ruling, calling the court’s decision unfair and saying his administration was pursuing another way to address birthright citizenship. The administration has maintained that the new orders are consistent with the Supreme Court’s ruling and existing constitutional authority.

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The renewed effort immediately prompted another legal battle.

On Aug. 11, the American Civil Liberties Union and other advocacy organizations asked a federal judge in New Hampshire to block the new orders. The groups argued that Trump was attempting to circumvent the Supreme Court’s June decision and that executive action could not override constitutional citizenship protections.

The legal dispute follows months of litigation over Trump’s original birthright citizenship order. His January 2025 executive order sought to change how the federal government recognized citizenship for some children born in the United States, including children whose parents were undocumented or present in the country temporarily. Multiple lawsuits were filed, and lower courts blocked the policy before the issue reached the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court’s June decision became a major setback for Trump’s broader effort to change birthright citizenship through executive action. The court’s ruling preserved the longstanding general rule that children born on U.S. soil are citizens, with limited exceptions.

Trump’s administration nevertheless continued pursuing restrictions through narrower executive measures, prompting renewed criticism from immigration advocates and Democratic leaders.

Kotek’s comments placed her among state and national officials criticizing Trump’s latest move. Her statement focused specifically on the constitutional issue, arguing that a president does not have the authority to unilaterally eliminate a right protected by the Constitution.

“The Supreme Court has ruled on this, and yet he persists,” Kotek said.

Her comments came as the latest legal challenge was being filed, setting up another potential court fight over the administration’s interpretation of birthright citizenship and the limits of presidential authority.

The outcome could determine whether Trump’s narrower approach survives where his broader policy failed. For now, birthright citizenship remains protected under the prevailing legal framework, while the new executive orders face challenges in federal court.