One day after the inauguration, Rhode Island takes Trump Administration to court to protect birthright citizenship
"We will work tirelessly to defend birthright citizenship, as enshrined by the Constitution,” said Attorney General Peter Neronha.
Update, June 27, 2025: Attorney General Neronha reaffirms commitment to protecting birthright citizenship:
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha issued the following statement today in response to the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. CASA, Inc.
“The Fourteenth Amendment expressly grants citizenship to American-born children, and today’s Supreme Court decision doesn’t change that. The Court did not address whether the Trump Administration’s attempt to end birthright citizenship with the stroke of a pen is lawful, but rather whether federal judges can block the attempt nationwide as litigation proceeds. Since January, I’ve travelled across New England speaking to residents concerned about this Administration’s impact on democracy and the rule of law. Throughout my travels, I have explained that we, as Democratic attorneys general, have only sought nationwide injunctions in specific circumstances - when doing so is necessary to remedy the Plaintiff States’ harms.
“But fear not, we won’t be deterred. We welcome the opportunity to continue our fight to protect birthright citizenship in the District Court. More broadly, we will continue to pull every available legal lever to ensure that Americans - all Americans - are protected from the progressively dangerous whims of this President.”
From a Rhode Island Attorney General press release:
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha announced on Tuesday that he is joining 19 other Plaintiff states in challenging President Donald Trump’s unconstitutional executive order purporting to end birthright citizenship.
“On day one, President Trump moved to use executive power to effectively amend the Constitution in an unprecedented, but not unexpected manner,” said Attorney General Neronha. “With the exception of Indigenous peoples and the descendants of enslaved peoples, the United States is a nation of descendants of immigrants, many of whom risked their lives for the promise of a better life. The Fourteenth Amendment guarantees that no matter your family’s country of origin, if you are born here, this is your home, this is your country. With this executive order, the President seeks to deny citizenship to Americans who would lawfully reside here, pay taxes here, raise their families here, and contribute to the extraordinary fabric of this country. If allowed, this executive order will have far-reaching economic, social, and human rights ramifications, the full extent of which we can’t know. Now is the time to come together as Americans and protect our fellow citizens, regardless of our differences and because of our differences. In the meantime, we will work tirelessly to defend birthright citizenship, as enshrined by the Constitution.”
President Trump yesterday issued an executive order fulfilling his promise to end birthright citizenship, in direct violation of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, which grants citizenship to “all persons born or naturalized in the United States,” and Section 1401 of the Immigration and Nationality Act.
Attorney General Neronha is filing suit in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, seeking to invalidate the executive order and to enjoin any actions taken to implement it. Rhode Island and the other Plaintiff states requested immediate relief to prevent the President’s Order from taking effect through a Temporary Restraining Order and a Preliminary Injunction.
As the Attorney General’s filing today explains, this executive order is directly inconsistent with the Constitution, the Immigration and Nationality Act, and two United States Supreme Court decisions—birthright citizenship dates back centuries – including to pre-Civil War America. Although the Supreme Court’s decision in Dred Scott denied birthright citizenship to the descendants of enslaved persons, the post-Civil War United States adopted the Fourteenth Amendment to protect citizenship for children born in the country. As the Attorney General’s filing also explains, the United States Supreme Court has twice upheld birthright citizenship, regardless of the immigration status of the individual’s parents. Despite the Constitution’s guarantee of citizenship, if this executive order is allowed to stand, thousands of children will – for the first time – lose their ability to fully be a part of American society as citizens with all the benefits and privileges that citizenship provides.
Further, this order will result in cuts to federal funding programs such as Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and foster care and adoption assistance programs. States must also immediately modify their operation and administration of benefits programs to account for this change, which will significantly burden the responsible agencies. For this reason, we are seeking an immediate injunction, as states should not have to bear these costs while their case proceeds.
In Rhode Island, Solicitor General Katherine Connolly Sadeck of the Office of the Attorney General is handling this matter.
Joining Rhode Island in today’s filing are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawai’i, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Vermont, Wisconsin, and the City of San Francisco.
Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha issued the following statement today in response to the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Trump v. CASA, Inc.
“The Fourteenth Amendment expressly grants citizenship to American-born children, and today’s Supreme Court decision doesn’t change that. The Court did not address whether the Trump Administration’s attempt to end birthright citizenship with the stroke of a pen is lawful, but rather whether federal judges can block the attempt nationwide as litigation proceeds. Since January, I’ve travelled across New England speaking to residents concerned about this Administration’s impact on democracy and the rule of law. Throughout my travels, I have explained that we, as Democratic attorneys general, have only sought nationwide injunctions in specific circumstances - when doing so is necessary to remedy the Plaintiff States’ harms.
“But fear not, we won’t be deterred. We welcome the opportunity to continue our fight to protect birthright citizenship in the District Court. More broadly, we will continue to pull every available legal lever to ensure that Americans - all Americans - are protected from the progressively dangerous whims of this President.”
On May 15, 2025, Attorney General Neronha released the following:
Attorney General Neronha and the coalition issue a joint statement on the Supreme Court Birthright Citizenship oral arguments
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter Neronha and a coalition of attorneys general today issued the following joint statement on the Supreme Court Birthright Citizenship oral arguments.
"We were proud to stand together to defend birthright citizenship and the rule of law at the U.S. Supreme Court today. For 127 years, since the Supreme Court settled the issue, the law has been clear: if you are born in this country, you are a citizen of the United States and our States. Administrations of both parties have consistently respected that right ever since. As every court to have considered the policy agrees, the President’s attempt to end birthright citizenship is patently unconstitutional. The Trump Administration’s argument before the Supreme Court today—that the President should be permitted to strip American citizenship from people based solely on the state in which they happen to be born—would upend settled law and settled practice and would produce widespread chaos and disruption.
"The President cannot rewrite the Constitution and contradict the Supreme Court’s holdings with the stroke of a pen."
Joining Attorney General Neronha in issuing the statement are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.