Supreme Court to decide legality of Trump move to limit birthright citizenship

The Supreme Court agreed on Friday to decide the legality of President Donald Trump's directive to restrict birthright citizenship in the United States, a contentious part of his efforts to curb immigration and a step that would alter how a 19th-century constitutional provision has long been understood, Report informs via Reuters.

The justices took up a Justice Department appeal of a lower court's ruling that blocked Trump's executive order telling US agencies not to recognize the citizenship of children born in the US, if neither parent is an American citizen or legal permanent resident, also called a "green card" holder.

The lower court ruled that Trump's policy violated the US Constitution's 14th Amendment and a federal law codifying birthright citizenship rights in a class-action lawsuit by parents and children whose citizenship is threatened by the directive.

The justices are expected to hear arguments during their current term and issue a ruling by the end of June. They did not set a date for the arguments.

The Republican president signed the order his first day back in office on January 20 as part of a suite of initiatives he has pursued during his second term as president to crack down on legal and illegal immigration. Trump's policies toward immigration have been among the most contentious aspects of both his terms as president, with critics accusing him of racial and religious discrimination in his approach.

The 14th Amendment has long been interpreted as guaranteeing citizenship for babies born in the United States. But the Trump administration has argued that the provision does not grant citizenship to the babies of immigrants who are in the country illegally or whose presence is lawful but temporary, such as university students or those on work visas.