Review 7 hours ago

Trump demands 'loyalty' from Supreme Court justices on birthright citizenship

Chief Justice John Roberts has warned such personal attacks on justices can be “dangerous.”

Topline

President Donald Trump attacked Supreme Court Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch on Truth Social late Sunday, lamenting them striking down his tariffs and pressuring them to rule in his favor on restricting birthright citizenship—claiming the justices have “hurt our country” despite warnings from Chief Justice John Roberts that such attacks are dangerous.

Key Facts

Trump said Gorsuch and Barrett, whom he appointed to the bench, “have hurt our Country so badly” by ruling against him on his sweeping tariff policy, after the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 the tariffs were unlawfully imposed.

The Trump administration has begun refunding businesses an estimated $166 billion for the tariffs they paid.

Trump questioned why Gorsuch and Barrett “have shown so little respect to our Country, and its people” by ruling against him on tariffs, suggesting they should “be loyal to the person that appointed them” to the court.

Trump predicted the Supreme Court would rule against his executive order restricting birthright citizenship, but still pressured Gorsuch and Barrett to rule in his favor, claiming a ruling against his order would not be “economically sustainable” for the U.S.

Trump’s comments attacking Gorsuch and Barrett come after Roberts previously warned against personal attacks on Supreme Court justices—as they and other federal judges have faced frequent personal threats—saying in March that such “personally directed hostility is dangerous and has got to stop.”

Crucial Quote

“I don’t want loyalty, but I do want and expect it for our Country,” Trump wrote Sunday, referring to justices ruling in his favor on birthright citizenship.

What To Watch For

The Supreme Court will likely issue its ruling in the birthright citizenship case next month, before the court’s term ends at the end of June. Justices signaled during oral arguments in the case they were skeptical of Trump’s policy, which would bar children from becoming citizens if their parents are not citizens or permanent residents themselves, but it still remains unclear how the court will ultimately rule.

Key Background

Trump has repeatedly gone after the Supreme Court in recent months after it ruled against his tariff policy in February, despite the 6-3 conservative court otherwise largely ruling in Trump’s favor during his second term. “Our Country was unnecessarily RANSACKED by the United States Supreme Court, which has become little more than a weaponized and unjust Political Organization,” Trump wrote on Truth Social in March. The president’s attacks have led Republicans to have declining trust in the court, polling has suggested, and comes as he and his administration have also leveled attacks on lower federal judges for ruling against his policies. The attacks come as federal judges have expressed widespread concern about threats against them in recent years, as they’ve issued rulings on partisan issues and faced public attacks. The U.S. Marshals Service, which protects federal judges, reports there have already been 292 threats to 236 federal judges reported so far this year, after nearly 400 judges faced 564 threats in 2025. Congress passed additional security funding for Supreme Court justices last year amid the heightened threats, though it has not yet done so for lower judges.