A federal judge in Seattle has issued a nationwide preliminary injunction against President Donald Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship — one day after a judge in Maryland also issued a temporary block on the order.
“It has become ever more apparent that to our president, the rule of law is but an impediment to his policy goals,” Judge John Coughenour said.
“The constitution is not something with which the government may play policy games,” Coughenour added. “The preliminary injunction is granted on a nationwide basis.”
Hours later, the Trump administration signaled its intent to appeal the judge’s order.
Seattle-based U.S. District Judge John Coughenour appears in a handout photo.
U.s. District Court For The West via via Reuters
During the hearing, which lasted less than 20 minutes, an attorney representing the state attorneys general argued the preliminary injunction is necessary to protect the plaintiffs in the case.
“When we ratified the 14th Amendment, we rendered a collective judgment and a promise that would guide our nation into the future,” the attorney for the state attorneys general said. “It was a promise that citizenship at birth is beyond the power of the government to take away or destroy. The president and the executive branch cannot alone undo that judgment or that promise.”
Drew Ensign, an attorney for the Department of Justice, called the interpretation of the citizenship clause by the plaintiff “demonstrably and unequivocally incorrect” and argued the citizenship clause applies only “to those in the allegiance and under the protection of the country.” The DOJ has argued that a child born in the United States to a mother without legal status cannot receive citizenship unless his or her father is a citizen or green card holder.
President Donald Trump bows his head during the National Prayer Breakfast at the Washington Hilton in Washington, Feb. 6, 2025.
Evan Vucci/AP
When giving his ruling, Coughenour called birthright citizenship “a fundamental constitutional right.”
“There are moments in the world’s history when people look back and ask, ‘Where were the lawyers, where were the judges?'” Coughenour said. “In these moments, the rule of law becomes especially vulnerable. I refuse to let that beacon go dark today.”
Later on Thursday, the Justice Department filed a notice of appeal in the Western District of Washington, fulfilling Trump’s vow to challenge the order.
“Obviously, we will appeal it,” Trump said in the Oval Office last month. “There’s no surprises with that judge.”
The filing puts the Trump administration on track to bring the case to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the country’s largest federal appellate court spanning from Arizona to Washington.
The Ninth Circuit has a reputation as a bastion of liberal jurisprudence – frequently blocking the policies of Republican presidents – that Trump attempted to reshape during his first term by adding 10 conservative judges to the San Francisco-based court.
