The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has filed a motion in federal district court in New Hampshire on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, seeking a declaratory order to block President Donald Trump’s second executive order aimed at restricting birthright citizenship.

This legal action follows the Supreme Court’s rejection of Trump’s first bid to end birthright citizenship. The same legal team that successfully challenged the initial order argues that the Supreme Court’s ruling should also invalidate the new executive order.

Signed last week as a response to the Supreme Court’s June ruling, Trump’s second order attempts to deny citizenship to children born on U.S. soil to certain categories of parents, including an "alien enemy," a "foreign government employee," a parent who "engaged in a commercial transaction" to obtain citizenship, or children born in territories where citizenship is not conferred by statute.

The ACLU, representing a class of potentially affected immigrant families, contends that the new order defies the Supreme Court’s decision. The attorneys wrote, "Nothing requires this Court to countenance the continued assault on this foundational constitutional principle or issue an endless string of EO-specific injunctions. The court should make clear that [Trump] may not take away class members' birthright under the auspices of these or any other executive actions."

The Supreme Court had confirmed four categories of children born on U.S. soil who would not automatically become citizens: children of ambassadors, those born on foreign public ships, those born to enemies occupying American territory, and members of Indian tribes. The 6-3 decision left little room for additional exceptions. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, in a concurring opinion, wrote that the four exceptions were a closed set, "meaning that there can be no additional exceptions recognized based on subsequent circumstances or developments."

President Trump spoke in the Oval Office of the White House in August, underscoring the administration’s position on the matter.

Sources