The Supreme Court handed down an opinion on Friday in a case regarding President Donald Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship, ruling that lower courts do not have the unilateral authority to block Trump’s agenda.

The justices ruled 6-3 along ideological lines, allowing Trump to try to end birthright citizenship in some parts of the country while legal challenges against his order proceed in others.

The ruling did not address the question of birthright citizenship itself. Birthright citizenship is the practice of granting automatic citizenship rights for babies born on United States soil, regardless of their parents’ citizenship status.

Previously, lower courts in Maryland, Massachusetts, and Washington state had issued nationwide injunctions that blocked Trump’s order from taking effect.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett penned the opinion for the majority.

She wrote that “federal courts do not exercise general oversight of the Executive Branch; they resolve cases and controversies consistent with the authority Congress has given them.”

“When a court concludes that the Executive Branch has acted unlawfully, the answer is not for the court to exceed its power, too,” Barrett said.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote a dissent that was joined by Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Elena Kagan.

Jackson also wrote her own dissent, which stated that “the Court’s decision to permit the Executive to violate the Constitution with respect to anyone who has not yet sued is an existential threat to the rule of law.”

Barrett blistered Jackson’s dissent in the court’s opinion.

“We will not dwell on Justice Jackson’s argument, which is at odds with more than two centuries’ worth of precedent, not to mention the Constitution itself. We observe only this: Justice Jackson decries an imperial Executive while embracing an imperial Judiciary.”

Very sharp rebuke of Jackson's dissent.
Last sentence ends: "law against anyone, anywhere."
ACB majority opinion concludes: "JUSTICE JACKSON decries an imperial Executive while embracing an imperial Judiciary." pic.twitter.com/CU9Ryss8rq

— Philip Wallach (@PhilipWallach) June 27, 2025

Attorney General Pam Bondi celebrated Friday’s ruling.

“Today, the Supreme Court instructed district courts to STOP the endless barrage of nationwide injunctions against President Trump,” Bondi posted on X. “This Department of Justice will continue to zealously defend @POTUS’s policies and his authority to implement them.”

Today, the Supreme Court instructed district courts to STOP the endless barrage of nationwide injunctions against President Trump. This would not have been possible without tireless work from our excellent lawyers @TheJusticeDept and our Solicitor General John Sauer.

This…

— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) June 27, 2025