Chief Justice John Roberts intervened during Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s questioning at the Supreme Court on Thursday, as she repeatedly interrupted lawyers during oral arguments on birthright citizenship and nationwide court injunctions. Sotom, who took over from Justice Clarence Thomas, dominated the initial part of the argument, pressing Solicitor General John Sauer on Trump’s administration’s stance regarding the authority of federal courts to issue nationwide injunctions. Roberts reigned in Sotom’s interruptions, underscoring the continuing debate over the extent of judicial power in such cases.
The argument centered on Trump’s order invalidating birthright citizenship, which Sotom argued violated four Supreme Court precedents. She contended that it was justified for a federal judge to grant an injunction against such a controversial order, asserting that the Supreme Court and no lower court could stop an executive from universally violating holdings by this court.
Sauer, representing the Trump administration, argued that universal injunctions surpassed the lower courts’ Article III powers under the Constitution, noting that they