Kelly, Colleagues File Brief with Supreme Court to Protect Birthright Citizenship Against Trump Attacks

Last week, Senators Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Dick Durbin (D-IL), and 25 of their Senate colleagues filed a brief requesting that the U.S. Supreme Court protect birthright citizenship and strike down President Donald Trump's unconstitutional attempts to take it away. Alongside colleagues from the House of Representatives, the senators filed an amicus brief in Trump v. Barbara, currently before the Supreme Court, with oral arguments scheduled for April 1, 2026.

The senators argue that Trump's Executive Order to strip automatic citizenship from children born in the United States violates the U.S. Constitution and over a century of Supreme Court rulings, as well as laws enacted by Congress.

"If you're born in the United States of America, you are an American. Donald Trump thinks he can rewrite our Constitution and target children who have never lived anywhere else and are as American as my own kids. We're fighting to keep that from happening and to protect the rule of law," said Kelly.

"The U.S. Constitution is clear: children born in the United States are American citizens," said Rosen. "We're submitting this brief requesting that the Supreme Court upholds the Constitution and puts an end to Donald Trump's illegal attempt to revoke citizenship from children born in the United States once and for all."

"The Supreme Court must uphold well-established law and century-old precedent that children born in America are U.S. citizens," said Durbin. "Children born here have only ever known America as their home-and they are just as American as every other citizen. President Trump can't rewrite the Constitution by royal fiat."

The amicus brief was also signed by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Chris Coons (D-DE), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), John Fetterman (D-PA), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Edward Markey (D-MA), Jeffrey Merkley (D-OR), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Jack Reed (D-RI), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Tina Smith (D-MN), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Peter Welch (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR).

The full amicus brief can be found here.