A coalition of 18 states is taking President Trump to court over his controversial executive order targeting birthright citizenship. The lawsuit, filed Tuesday, aims to stop the administration from denying citizenship to children born in the U.S. to undocumented immigrants. This move sets the stage for a heated legal showdown over immigration policy. The legal challenge, led by attorneys general from New Jersey, California, and Massachusetts, argues that Trump’s order is an overreach of presidential power. “Presidents are powerful, but he is not a king,” said New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin. “He can’t rewrite the Constitution with a stroke of the pen.” The executive order, signed on the first day of Trump’s second term, claims that children of unauthorized immigrants are not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the U.S. and therefore don’t qualify for citizenship under the 14th Amendment. This interpretation contradicts over a century of legal precedent, which has consistently upheld birthright citizenship for all children born on U.S. soil, except for those of accredited diplomats. Legal experts suggest the courts are likely to side with the states. Gerard Magliocca, a law professor at Indiana University, pointed out that recent Supreme Court rulings have limited the executive branch’s ability to tackle major political issues without congressional approval. “If that’s true for student loans or Covid-19 rules, it should apply to citizenship too,” he said. The lawsuit, filed in Massachusetts, also includes support from cities like San Francisco and Washington, D.C. While some judges, like Trump-appointed James C. Ho, have expressed sympathy for stricter immigration policies, the broader judiciary is expected to uphold the longstanding interpretation of the 14th Amendment. This legal battle is just the beginning of what could be a drawn-out fight over immigration and constitutional rights. For now, the states are standing firm, ready to defend birthright citizenship against what they call an “extraordinary and extreme” move by the president.