Trump enters the Supreme Court as justices appear skeptical of birthright bans
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President Donald Trump’s presence at the Supreme Court this week may not sway the justices, who appear skeptical of the president’s push to curb naturalization of undocumented immigrants.
But Trump’s historic appearance – no president has attended oral arguments at the supreme court before – showed the president’s deep interest in his historic effort to increase the legal base of more than 100 that allows automatic citizenship for those born in the US.
And the president’s presence on the Supreme Court could solve a political problem by energizing MAGA voters ahead of the midterm elections, when Republicans will be defending their fragile House and Senate majorities.
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President Donald Trump became the first sitting president to personally listen to the Supreme Court’s oral arguments Wednesday in Washington, DC (Kent Nishimura/AFP)
“Immigration has been the defining issue of Donald Trump’s time as a national politician, and his record on border security remains one of the most important accomplishments of his second term,” Republican strategist Colin Reed told Fox News Digital.
Reed emphasized that “even if the Supreme Court does not agree with his opinion in this case, the president has made it clear that he is not abandoning his commitment to the broader issue.”
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On his first day back in the White House last year, Trump signed an executive order that announced that children born in the US to undocumented immigrants or those with limited-time visas would no longer be granted US citizenship.
But the order didn’t take effect, after it was quickly struck down in multiple lawsuits and blocked by federal judges from coast to coast who argued that it violated a long-standing law.
People protest outside the US Supreme Court before the arrival of President Donald Trump on April 1, 2026, in Washington, DC The Supreme Court is hearing oral arguments between Trump v. Barbara to decide whether President Trump’s executive order ending birthright is constitutional. (Al Drago/Getty Images)
On Wednesday, the president remained silent until he left court, and after the conclusion of arguments in the case, before he wrote on social media, “We are the only country in the world that is HASTY enough to allow ‘Birthright Citizenship’!”
Most Americans seem to disagree.
Sixty-nine percent of voters support the birthright of children born in the United States to illegal immigrants, according to a national Fox News poll conducted March 20-23.
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But there is a wide divide, with 91% of Democrats and a third of independents but only 44% of Republicans supporting birthright citizenship in such cases.
The majority of Republicans polled in the poll, 55%, disapproved. And among self-identified MAGA Republicans, opposition reached 60%.
“Fighting illegal immigration has been President Trump’s strongest issue, and he’s made our borders more secure than ever. He’s obviously fighting a lot of battles and birthright is one of them,” veteran Republican spokesman Tim Murtaugh told Fox News Digital.
Murtaugh, a veteran of Trump’s 2020 and 2024 presidential campaigns, said “the president’s presence at the hearings shows how much he cares about this issue, and shines a brighter light on the birthright violation than it would have if he didn’t come.”
And Murtaugh sees an issue that puts Democrats on the defensive during the terms.
“It’s possible that the court will say that Congress must deal with this issue. If so, this could be very important in the midterm elections because the Democrats will be put on the defensive with their support for illegal aliens and lawlessness,” said Murtaugh.
Immigration and border security became a winning issue for Trump and the Republicans and helped solidify their victory in the 2024 election, when they won the White House and the Senate and secured their majority in the House.
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But after the political backlash earlier this year over Trump’s unprecedented crackdown on immigration, polling on the issue raises warning signs for Republicans and suggests immigration could come back to drain the GOP midterms.
“Let’s be clear: Ending birthright citizenship is essential to Trump’s broader plan to target immigrant families,” said Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin. “If Trump has his way, overturning birthright citizenship will wreak havoc on our communities.”
Fox News’ Ashley Oliver and Victoria Balara contributed to this story.
