The ruling on the Supreme Court’s biggest case of the term is in. The court found in Trump v. Barbara that the 14th Amendment guarantees citizenship to the children of illegal immigrants born in the United States. Our legal system will continue handling anchor babies the same way it has for years.As problematic as this ruling is, it must be said that much of the response opposing it has also been rather bad. Populist drivel has successfully made the conversation radioactive. The people who sacrifice principles in the name of expediency are now saying that the situation warrants everything from forced sterilization of foreigners to repealing the 19th Amendment (all the female justices were in the majority).But there is a more sane way to oppose the decision. While the majority opinion gave an impressive historical run-through to justify their decision, what it left out is crucial.
As often happens when he’s in the minority, Justice Clarence Thomas’s dissent is far more insightful than the majority opinion is. Totaling an astounding 91 pages compared to the majority opinion’s 26, the eldest justice shows his depth of knowledge once again. Thomas references a speech given by Sen. Jacob Howard, the man who actually wrote the citizenship clause of the 14th Amendment. Rising in support of ratification in 1866, Howard explained:“This will not, of course, include persons born in the United States who are foreigners, aliens, who belong to the families of ambassadors or foreign ministers accredited to the government of the United States, but will include every other class of persons.”If words like “foreigners” and “aliens” do not describe our illegal immigrants, then who knows what does?The Supreme Court is seen in Washington, May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
