SUPREME COURT TO HEAR BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP ROW

The US Supreme Court said it will hear arguments on President Donald Trump's bid to start restricting automatic birthright citizenship in a clash that could upend a longstanding constitutional right.

- Greg Stohr

The court said Thursday it will keep a pause on Mr Trump's restrictions which would mean babies born in the US wouldn't become citizens unless at least one parent is a citizen or green card holder in advance of the special May 15 argument session.

The case won't directly concern the validity of the new restrictions and will instead centre on Mr Trump's request to narrow three rulings that blocked implementation of the policy nationwide while litigation goes forward.

Mr Trump and the Justice Department are asking the high court to limit those rulings to particular people connected to the cases, or to the states and other jurisdictions that sued.

The case will test so-called universal injunctions that broadly thwart White House policies via a single lawsuit. The Justice Department told the high court those types of orders "have reached epidemic proportions since the start of the current administration."

Mr Trump signed an executive order Jan 20 that seeks to jettison what has been the widespread understanding that the constitution's 14th Amendment confers citizenship on virtually everyone born on US soil.