Yesterday at SCOTUS, justices from across the ideological spectrum (including Trump appointees) expressed deep skepticism about the administration's effort to end birthright citizenship. Here's what they said.

Today, the Supreme Court hears a case challenging Trump’s executive order denying citizenship to children born in the U.S. if their parents lack permanent legal status. The stakes are enormous – more than 250,000 children born here every year.

No law enforcement agency should be funded without being required to follow the Constitution and the law. Congress must deliver binding protections, real transparency, and meaningful oversight.

This is staggering. DOJ concedes it relied on a memo that never authorized immigration court arrests yet defended the practice in court for months. Meanwhile, people were arrested and deported while trying to obey court orders. That’s a betrayal of due process and professional ethics.

As a result of the hard work of the American Immigration Council and their litigation partners, and the courage of the plaintiffs in this case, we have all secured a meaningful victory for justice and the rule of law. @immcouncil.org

Creating an independent immigration court is a critical first step to protecting due process, restoring integrity, and ensuring decisions worthy of the public’s trust.

By any measure, the Trump Administration is failing the American people and undermining the national interest in every area of immigration. #SOTU

Congress should recognize what the American people already have: this approach is failing. It is Congress’s responsibility — and constitutional obligation — to reassert oversight, restore guardrails, and ensure that immigration policy reflects both the rule of law and our national interests.

NEW: AILA is launching A Better Way on Immigration, a series of policy briefs evaluating the first year of the Trump Administration’s policies, showing the impact on Americans and presenting a forward-looking vision for immigration policy. https://bit.ly/4tItZOW

At #SOTU, Trump will claim mass deportation is working. It’s not. He’s detaining mostly non-criminal immigrants & more are dying in custody. He’s damaging local economies & collapsing tourism. And he’s doing much of this illegally by detaining people without a hearing before a judge.

People are suffering inside Dilley. A baby denied medication after respiratory failure. A mother in pain, possibly with cancer, unable to get consistent care. More than half detained are kids. Dilley has been shut down before & must be shut down again.

Polls show the public is alarmed and want ICE & CBP reined in. Congress must demand real guardrails before funding DHS: require warrants for street arrests; ban racial profiling; no enforcement at churches & schools, and consequences when agencies break the law.

If the government can send agents into an immigrant family’s home without a judicial warrant, it can send them into yours. That’s the whole point of the 4th Amendment: a neutral judge stands between us and the door. Treating that safeguard as optional is frightening.

AILA Senior Counsel of Practice and Ethics Charity Anastasio details the recent surge in immigration scams and the coordinated and sophisticated schemes threatening legitimate providers’ reputations in a new #ThinkImmigration blog post. https://bit.ly/46ME0Rk

Judicial warrants for ICE aren’t radical. Without them, masked agents can kick down anyone’s door at night—the “chief evil” SCOTUS said the 4th Amendment is meant to prevent. Calling warrants a “complete nonstarter” is absurd and dangerous.

A divided 5th Circuit greenlit ICE’s policy of detaining immigrants without bond, abandoning decades of practice and basic due process. Treating civil immigration cases like criminal punishment erodes the rule of law and human dignity.

New polling is clear: Americans want real ICE reform. Supermajorities support visible IDs, bans on masking, independent investigations on wrongdoing, and an end to racial profiling. Voters want accountability and transparency, not unchecked enforcement. www.gelliottmorris.com/p/what-ameri...

The Administration is gutting due process again. This time by issuing an interim final rule making the Board of Immigration Appeals less relevant and offering immigrants less chance to have their case reviewed unless they go to federal court.

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to end TPS for Haiti, making clear that TPS holders cannot be deported or denied work authorization while the case moves forward. AILA celebrates this win & will carefully follow further developments on Haitian TPS.

Don’t waste American taxpayers’ dollars on militarized raids & unchecked detention. Existing DHS resources should be shifted to agencies like FEMA that genuinely protect the public. Public safety is built through transparency, not terrorizing communities. https://bit.ly/3ZgaWh7

Incredibly proud of our AILA member attorneys who worked tirelessly to support Liam and his father and get them out of detention. The reality is they should never have been detained in the first place, and the administration continues to call terrorizing children & families "policy."

Congress now has until Feb 13 to make real changes at DHS. Congress must halt DHS money until it stops violence by federal agents, racial profiling, warrantless arrests, mass roving patrols, and arrests at schools, churches, and places where emergency services are provided.

Congress must block the DHS funding bill unless it has the necessary guardrails to end the lawless, deadly actions DHS is engaging in. DHS is endangering, NOT protecting, American communities. Take Action: www.aila.org/library/take...

AILA calls on Congress to settle for nothing less than real reforms that ensure compliance with the Constitution, reduce DHS’s excessive and bloated budget, and keep our communities safe.

"If immigration enforcement is civil, it must look civil: transparent, notice-driven, and judge-centered. No masked street operations for civil paperwork. No brandishing of firearms with no imminent threat of harm" -Jeremy McKinney on #ThinkImmigration. https://bit.ly/45zRLm6

Today, AILA sent a vote recommendation to the Senate urging a NO vote on the FY2026 DHS Appropriations bill. Congress cannot give more money to DHS without putting in place guardrails to stop the unlawful actions that are causing violence & death. https://bit.ly/4k6HJPo

A second U.S. citizen has now been killed as a direct result of DHS’s reckless enforcement operations. This campaign of fear must end.  AILA calls for what the country deserves:  a full, independent investigation with integrity and accountability; and Senators to vote NO on any DHS funding (1/2)

When the government tells judges to ignore a federal court order, it undermines the rule of law itself. Court orders aren’t optional. Defying them erodes judicial independence, due process, and the basic promise that the law applies to everyone.

AILA opposes increased funding for DHS detailed in the FY 26 DHS appropriations bill. Further expansion of a dangerous, harmful, and deadly enforcement system cannot be allowed to continue under the watch of this Congress. We need urgent accountability.

DOJ ordered immigration judges to defy a federal court’s nationwide ruling that said class members have a right to a bond hearing. ICE is terrorizing communities and arresting people with impunity, and now DOJ is limiting any chance for release. Defying court orders erodes the rule of law.

As an organization of more than 18,000 immigration lawyers, we are concerned about the safety of Americans and their family members in Iran, as well as Iranian nationals in the United States.

The Administration calls this a “pause on processing.” In reality, it blocks immigrant visas from 75 countries—including family and employment-based cases—and adds a de facto wealth test. The human and economic costs are real. We cannot keep shutting our doors on legal immigration.

Ending TPS for Somalia is disgraceful given conditions there. Added to the Administration's ICE operations in Minnesota & multiple derogatory statements about the Somali-American community, this is a deliberate attempt by the Administration to sow fear & harm.

A life was lost in Minneapolis today, and that alone demands pause and accountability. No immigration operation should end in death. This tragedy is a direct result of ICE using excessive force as part of a campaign of fear and intimidation in targeted communities.

NEW: AILA President Jeff Joseph responds to the Trump Administration's recent immigration changes, including the expansion of the ban, widespread cancellations of citizenship oath ceremonies, and halt to the Diversity Visa program. https://bit.ly/48WFVod

Ignoring the need for immigration reform affects tens of thousands of American families. Longtime immigrant workers care for our kids, but without a path to legal status, families face constant disruption and uncertainty. @immcouncil.org

You can’t be “pro-innovation” and “anti-immigrant” at the same time. The Trump–Miller agenda is a recipe for losing talent, investment, and jobs to our competitors.

AILA supports new paths to legal status, but there are serious concerns about whether the President has the authority to collect a monetary gift in exchange for an employment-based immigrant visa, especially if applicants who have been waiting in line are moved to the back of the line.

AILA is committed to sensible, lawful reforms that address the real challenges in our immigration system, strengthen security, and uphold our nation’s constitutional and humanitarian commitments.

"Instead of honoring our legal and moral commitments, the administration is sowing fear and uncertainty and undermining the credibility of its own institutions,” AILA Executive Director Ben Johnson responds to Trump Administration refugee re-screenings. https://bit.ly/4oduBIF

Great article highlighting the important work of @aila.org and our members to protect clients' rights, particularly through habeas efforts.

AILA Elected Director Heather Prendergast describes a recent consultation that deeply affected her: a young Venezuelan couple faces detention and removal after a routine traffic stop upended their lives. Read on the #ThinkImmigration blog. https://bit.ly/3WxICpa

NEW on #ThinkImmigration: AILA Law Journal Editor-in-Chief Cyrus Mehta describes the key topics from articles published in the newly released Fall 2025 issue of the AILA Law Journal. https://bit.ly/3L5k9F5

"Put immigration adjudication where it belongs: under an independent Article I court, led by judges whose duty is to the law—not to a political boss." Read more on #ThinkImmigration from AILA Past President Jeremy McKinney. https://bit.ly/4hkX4KQ

A DHS audit just gutted most of a South Dakota dairy’s workforce, hardworking people who kept the operation running for decades. This is what happens when enforcement replaces reason: rural economies and American businesses suffer.

AILA Chicago Chapter Citizenship Day Coordinator Megan Davis describes how the Chicago Chapter partnered with community organizations to hold a successful & inspiring 2025 AILA Citizenship Day, helping people toward naturalization. #ThinkImmigration https://bit.ly/46TUIOa

"Advocates have urged immigrants, especially children, not to sign any documents that attempt to threaten or incentivize children to waive their rights without first seeking legal advice." https://bit.ly/4pTEtt1

Late yesterday, trusted sources warned that an effort to threaten the security of unaccompanied children between the ages of 14-18 might start today. We do not have confirmed reports that this effort is underway, but we continue to monitor the situation.

The Trump administration's immigration policies targeting highly skilled immigrants threatens to weaken the U.S. economy through undercutting innovation and not providing ample opportunity for potential talent to stay and contribute. New AILA policy brief: bit.ly/42JzjWL

Government Shutdown and Immigration: Immigration enforcement continues unabated, while some other areas are affected; here is @aila.org's updated resource about impacts on immigration law and policy.