Connecticut Attorney General William Tong (D) was in a Boston federal court on Friday to challenge President Donald Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship.
The Trump administration argues that children born to undocumented immigrants aren’t citizens because their parents are not subject to U.S. jurisdiction.
Tong is one of 18 attorneys general who argue the order violates the Constitution's 14th Amendment.
He spoke before the court session with Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell (D) and New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin (D).
“The words of the 14th Amendment could not be more clear, which is why there hasn't been a serious debate about this for 100 years,” Tong said.
The AGs in Boston said they were confident the judge would rule in their favor on Friday.
Two other birthright citizenship challenges are pending in the courts. On Wednesday, a judge in Maryland paused the order, and on Thursday, a judge in Seattle blocked it.
The Trump administration has already appealed the Seattle judge’s decision.
Tong said the fight against Trump’s EO is personal for him. He was the first in his immediate family to be granted American citizenship.
“Not because I derived citizenship from my parents, but because I was born on American soil. And if my parents didn't know that I would be a citizen at that moment, what would they have done? I'll tell you what they wouldn't have done,” Tong said. “They wouldn't have put everything they had into me and my sisters. But because I was born a citizen in this country, they knew they could sign a lease, they could buy a house, they could start a business, a Chinese restaurant.”
