Sen. Cruz Leads Amicus Brief in Support of Trump Executive Order on U.S. Citizenship

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights, filed an amicus brief in Trump v. Washington and Trump v. Barbara. The brief argues that the Fourteenth Amendment's Citizenship Clause does not grant automatic citizenship to children born in the United States to parents who are illegally present. This case is before the U.S. Supreme Court.

Upon filing, Sen. Cruz said, "Birthright citizenship is an abuse of our system and is an incentive for illegal immigration. It is unconstitutional, undermines the value of U.S. citizenship, and contrary to the original meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment. I hope the Supreme Court will affirm that American citizenship is reserved for those who abide by and uphold our laws."

Read the amicus brief text here.

BACKGROUND

In January, Cruz joined Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Katie Britt (R-Ala.) in introducing the Birthright Citizenship Act of 2025. The bill would stop the practice of granting citizenship to both the children of illegal immigrants and the children of non-immigrants in the U.S. on temporary visas.