Dear Friend,
This morning, the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in a case that could decide the future of birthright citizenship in America.
What began as a bold and lonely argument advanced by Claremont Institute scholars is now a matter before the highest court in the land. For decades, Edward Erler, John Eastman, and Michael Anton—each a Claremont Senior Fellow—have laid the intellectual and legal groundwork and make the public arguments to recover the true meaning of the Fourteenth Amendment’s Citizenship Clause.
Today, Dr. John Eastman will be present in the courtroom in Washington, D.C., as oral arguments begin. While he is not representing the case, our Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence, which he founded and leads, submitted an amicus brief urging the Court to return to the 14th Amendment's original intent: that automatic citizenship was never intended for children of those who enter or remain in the country unlawfully.
The New York Times has taken notice. In yesterday's feature, “Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to Automatic Citizenship for Children of Immigrants,” Claremont is cited as the intellectual engine driving this debate from the fringes of academic discourse to the center of American law and policy. Read the full article here.
But our impact isn’t limited to the courtroom. Claremont fellows and fellowship alumni have shaped this debate through every available channel—appearing on national television, penning essays in top publications, advising both Trump administrations, and commanding influential podcasts. Our scholars’ arguments have been quoted by legislators, cited in presidential speeches, and adopted as policy by the leading conservative voices of our time.
