Attorney General Jay Jones joins multistate coalition challenging Trump’s birthright citizenship executive order

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Attorney General Jay Jones delivered on another Day One priority on Thursday by joining a multistate coalition in signing an amicus brief supporting the defense of birthright citizenship at the U.S. Supreme Court.

The attorney general's office announced on Thursday, Feb. 26, that Jones is seeking to stand up to President Donald Trump’s illegal effort to "rewrite the Constitution and overturn federal law."

“Birthright citizenship is a core constitutional right, and a cornerstone of American democracy,” Jones said in a release. “President Trump’s executive order is in direct violation of our Constitution, and I am proud to stand with Attorneys General from across the nation to fight back and protect our citizens.”

As part of his administration's immigration crackdown, Trump signed an executive order on his first day in office in January 2025 aimed at ending birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants.

The move faced immediate legal challenges and was blocked by federal courts -- even leading to a significant constitutional dispute over the 14th Amendment.

Two lawsuits challenging the order soon followed -- one in the Western District of Washington and one in the District of Massachusetts. According to the attorney general's office, both suits were successful and blocked this executive order from "ever taking effect," a release said.

The attorney general's office warned of implications for babies born to American citizens, who would no longer be considered citizens and would live "under a threat of deportation," as well as states themselves.

States would lose federal funding to programs they administer, such as Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program and foster care and adoption assistance programs, per a release.

This coalition is one of many legal actions Jones announced just hours into his new position. Many of these moves include joining lawsuits against the president's administration and reversing several positions taken by his predecessors.

Just days prior, Jones filed a lawsuit in the Court of Federal Claims and joined the multistate lawsuit demanding that Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reinstate billions of dollars in Solar for All grants, per a Feb. 24 press release.

The coalition joining Thursday's filing includes New Jersey, Washington, Massachusetts, California, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin, as well as San Francisco.