(The Center Square) – A coalition of House Republicans has filed two amicus briefs supporting President Donald Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants.
The lawmakers asked a federal court in Washington and another in Massachusetts to deny Democratic states attorney generals’ requests for a preliminary injunction on Trump’s order, which those states and dozens of others claim violates the Constitution.
The citizenship clause found in the 14th amendment states that “all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States.”
That phrase has been interpreted over the last 150 years to guarantee citizenship to any child born in the United States – with a few exceptions – regardless of whether the mother is residing in the country legally.
But the Republican lawmakers, led by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, argue in the briefs that Trump’s order is indeed constitutional because the 14th amendment was meant to apply only to American citizens and recently freed slaves, not illegal immigrants and tourists who come to the U.S. explicitly to have children.
“Because the Fourteenth Amendment does not confer citizenship on the children of illegally present aliens, and because Congress has not done so by statute, the other branches cannot confer such citizenship on their own,” the brief states. “The Executive Order at issue here properly ensures that rule is followed within the executive branch, and thus the Order should not be enjoined.”
The term “jurisdiction,” they further argue, does not mean territorial jurisdiction, but national jurisdiction, which requires allegiance to the U.S. government (this is why Trump’s executive order specifically excludes children of lawful permanent residents).
The 17 U.S. representatives who joined Jordan include:
Tom McClintock from California Victoria Spartz from IndianaRobert Onder from Missouri Brad Knott from North CarolinaMark Harris from North CarolinaRussell Fry from South CarolinaBrandon Gill from TexasChip Roy from TexasLance Gooden from TexasTroy Nehls from TexasWesley Hunt from TexasBen Cline from VirginiaMichael Baumgartner from WashingtonGlenn Grothman from WisconsinScott Fitzgerald from WisconsinHarriet Hageman from Wyoming
“The Left has misused and abused birthright citizenship for too long. President Trump’s executive order must be swiftly enacted,” Gill posted Tuesday on X. “I’m proud to join @JudiciaryGOP Chairman Jordan in signing this amicus brief supporting President Trump’s executive order.”

(The Center Square) – Nineteen state attorneys general have joined Wisconsin’s Catholic Charities Bureau of Superior in challenging a Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling that the charity does primarily secular work and thus must pay into the state’s unemployment fund.
Catholic Charities appealed the Wisconsin court decision to the U.S. Supreme Court and the group of 19 state attorneys general filed an amicus brief in support of the group’s case.
“If any religious activity, no matter how deeply rooted in doctrine and practice, becomes secular the moment the nonreligious adopt it, then no religious exercise is safe from government regulation,” the attorneys general wrote.
The amicus brief was led by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost and joined by Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia.
The Catholic Charities claim the Wisconsin ruling violates the First Amendment and it questions the Catholic church’s religious teachings.
“Catholic Charities Bureau answers Christ’s call to minister to the most vulnerable by caring for the poor, disabled, and elderly throughout the diocese and beyond,” said Bishop James Powers, Bishop of the Diocese of Superior. “We pray the Court recognizes that this vital work of improving the human condition lies at the heart of our duty as Catholics.”
Other briefs were filed by the U.S. Department of Justice, religious scholars, liberty law scholars and religious groups.
Non-profits that operate in Wisconsin for primarily religious purposes do not have to pay into unemployment in the state but the court ruled that the exemption does not apply to Catholic Charities because it serves everyone, not just Catholics.
“The power to define religion is the power to destroy it,” Yost said. “Our Constitution guards against government interference on religion, and few maneuvers are as intrusive as the government taking it upon itself to define religious practice.”

(The Center Square) – The family of a junior at Baraboo High School is suing the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association after she was ruled ineligible to play softball at the school this spring.
The lawsuit was filed by the Wisconsin Institute of Law and Liberty on behalf of Macy Weigel. Weigel transferred to the public school from Community Christian School, which does not have athletic teams.
The Weigels say the transfer was necessary due to financial constraints after Weigel’s younger sibling was diagnosed with a deadly and rare blood condition and her mother left her career as a full-time teacher to care for the sibling.
The Weigels applied for a waiver to allow Macy to compete for Baraboo this spring but that waiver was denied by the WIAA.
“Our daughter is not gaming the system,” said Emily Weigel, Macy’s mother. “She simply wants to participate in high school sports and is making the best of her family’s involuntary decision to switch schools. The WIAA has gone too far, and we are fighting back on her behalf and the many other students who have been subject to the arbitrary decision-making of this organization.”
Macy has competed in a recreational softball league previously, making her ineligible for an automatic waiver for those who have not competed in a sports before.
“Our clients live and pay taxes in the school district, and their child has been denied access to programs sponsored and funded by the district because the bureaucrats at the WIAA arbitrarily decided she was not worthy of a ‘waiver’ of their ‘transfer rules,’ said WILL Associate Counsel Skylar Croy. “We must rein in this illogical decision making to allow children the full opportunity to flourish and develop.”
The lawsuit challenges WIAA’s authority to exercise authority over public schools in the state because there is no statute or constitutional provision giving that authority to the WIAA over the state’s public schools, which are all WIAA members and make up 80% of WIAA membership.
“WIAA’s exercise of this power, and school districts’ deferral to WIAA, violates multiple doctrines and constitutional provisions,” the lawsuit says.

(The Center Square) – Republicans at the Wisconsin Capitol want Democrats, including Gov. Tony Evers, to not play politics with their latest immigration legislation.
State Rep. Tyler August, R-Lake Geneva, and Sen. Julian Bradley on Tuesday introduced legislation that would punish sheriffs across the state who do not cooperate with ICE.
“To sum it up, I want to stress three words – it keeps our communities safe. Keeps communities safe,” Bradley explained. “And the way we’re going to accomplish this is to require proof of legal presence for those being held in county jails on felony offenses. I want to stress the word felony offenses.”
The legislation would essentially fine sheriffs 15% of their shared revenue dollars if they refuse to cooperate with ICE or refuse to tally illegal immigrants in their jails.
Bradley said there are already sheriffs in the state who’ve promised to give up federal reimbursement dollars to make a political point about immigration and the new Trump Administration.
“We don’t want Wisconsin on the hook for this, therefore sheriffs shall seek reimbursement from the feds for cost incurred in complying with the retainer,” Bradley said. “We know from recent media [reports] that there are sheriffs in our state that are not interested in complying with federal law. Our message to them is do not put your personal politics above the safety of the citizens who elected you.”
Evers on Monday promised to veto the plan.
An Evers spokesperson said the legislation “is not a serious proposal,” and said lawmakers should be working with the governor and local sheriffs “to improve public safety, reduce crime, and keep dangerous drugs and violent criminals off of our streets.”
“I think it’s unbelievably unfortunate, but not unexpected that the governor would threaten to veto a bill that he hasn’t even seen yet,” August said Tuesday morning. “It seems to be his M-O that he governs by veto. He goes out and gives a State of the State speech about talking about how we all need to get along and work together, and then just starts to threaten to veto bills before they’re even released.”
August said Democratic lawmakers in Madison aren’t much better.
“Their party has become so extreme on this one issue that they can’t even support removing criminals, violent criminals from our streets that should not even be in the country in the first place,” he said.
Democratic leaders at the Capitol were silent about the immigration legislation, but Milwaukee County Democrats did express their opposition.
“This dangerous legislation would force Wisconsin residents to carry documents at all times to prove they have the right to live in their homes, go to work, and pick their children up from school. Under this proposal, anyone detained by a Wisconsin sheriff who cannot immediately prove their legal status would be at risk of being handed over to federal authorities,” a group including Supervisors Caroline Gómez-Tom, Juan Miguel Martínez, Anne O’Connor, Steven Shea, Sky Z. Capriolo, and Justin Bielinski said.

(The Center Square) – Wisconsin would likely see increased revenue but it would require either amending the state constitution or revising a pact with tribal nations in order to bring online sports wagering to the state, according to a new report from Wisconsin Policy Forum.
The group does impartial public policy research on topics that could be legislated.
Wisconsin is one of 38 states with legalized sports wagering, with Missouri set to be 39th, but it is currently allowed only on tribal lands. Oneida casino has an app to place sports wagers but it must be used on casino property or designated tribal lands.
More states continue to allow more forms of sports wagering since a 2018 Supreme Court ruling overturned the rule blocking sports wagering, called the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act.
States that have legalized wagering have brought in hundreds of millions in revenue, with those numbers the largest for states that allow mobile and online sports wagering across the state.
Wisconsin currently gets annual tribal gaming payments based on revenue that tribal casinos make on table games such as blackjack, poker, craps and roulette.
The state received between $50 million and $55 million annually in payments between 2013 and 2019 until the pandemic dropped that number to $8 million in 2019, according to the report.
The past two years, however, those numbers rose to $66 million each year.
Across the country, gross gaming revenue from sports wagering rose from $352 million in the third quarter of calendar year 2020 to $3.24 billion in the third quarter of 2024.
If state leaders attempted to change the Wisconsin constitution to allow sports wagering, it would require votes in two consecutive legislative sessions and then approval in a statewide referendum.
“Such a step would likely forfeit the state’s revenues from tribal gaming payments, which totaled more than $66 million in 2024,” the report said. “Thus, any consideration of new revenues from taxing this activity would also need to account for these losses as well as impacts to certain local governments in Wisconsin such as Milwaukee and Milwaukee County and the state’s 11 federally recognized tribes and their members.”
The report then points to Florida, where a pact between the state and the Seminole tribe allows the tribe exclusive rights to sports wagering in the state as long as the bets are placed through a server on tribal lands.
That pact was challenged in federal court and upheld.
“This creates a potential precedent for a Wisconsin tribe to seek to renegotiate the terms of its compact with the state to allow online sports betting with customers around the state through a server on tribal land,” the report said. “Though this possibility remains for now hypothetical, policymakers and the public may wish to consider and discuss their views on it. The legal landscape for sports betting has shifted rapidly in just a few years and may continue to do so.”

(The Center Square) – Wisconsin’s Democratic chairman says he’s coming back to the state with a renewed focus on winning in his state.
Democratic Party of Wisconsin chairman Ben Wikler on Sunday lost his bid to become the next DNC chairman.
“While the vote didn’t go the way I hoped, I’m grateful that our whole party has embraced the vision and the values that our campaign lifted up. It’s time to fight for working people, across race and ethnicity, in every corner of the country; to build a permanent campaign that organizes and communicates year-round, in every place and on every platform,” Wikler said in a weekend statement. “I’m deeply proud of the race that we ran, of the way we united so many parts of the party – from unions to elected leaders to the grassroots – and of the work of an extraordinary team and dedicated volunteers.”
Minnesota’s Ken Martin received 246.5 votes of the total 428 members who voted to win the chairmanship. Wikler received 134.5.
“Going forward, I urge everyone who supported me to join me in working with Chair Martin to ensure that the Democratic Party rises to this moment of crisis in our country,” Wikler added.
Wikler had plenty of high-profile support heading into the weekend vote. He secured endorsements from U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Wikler said he plans to turn his attention to April’s race for the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
“For all those who poured themselves into the campaign, we have another critical fight ahead. Wisconsin’s April 1 state Supreme Court race will determine the future of abortion access, union rights, freedom, and democracy in the Badger State,” Wikler added. “Let’s take a breath and get back to work.”
Wikler has been very successful as Wisconsin Democratic chairman. Since taking over in 2019, he’s led his party to eight statewide victories, including Gov. Tony Evers’ 2022 re-election, Justice Janet Protasiewicz’s 2023 victory, and U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin’s win in 2024.
He’s also raised a reported $230 million over the past five years.

(The Center Square) – Early voting for the spring primary begins on Tuesday across Wisconsin.
Election Day is Feb. 18.
The election includes a race for state superintendent and local positions such as city council and school boards.
Winners in the primary will then be part of the main election on April 1, along with a constitutional amendment on photo ID and the state supreme court race.
Municipal clerks can issue ballots that must be completed in-person at the clerk’s office or designated location after a voter shows a valid photo ID.
The early voting process, called in-person absentee voting, can continue through Feb. 16. Ballots cast ahead cannot be counted until Election Day.
Feb. 13 is the last day for most voters to request an absentee ballot by mail, online, email or fax but the Wisconsin Elections Commission said that waiting until the deadline likely does not leave enough time for the ballot to be returned via mail by the required 8 p.m. on Election Day.
“Your ballot must be returned to your clerk by 8 p.m. on Election Day to be counted, and the U.S. Postal Service says it can take up to seven days for a letter to arrive,” said WEC Administrator Meagan Wolfe. “If you’re planning to mail your ballot back, you should do so as soon as possible.”
Absentee ballots are counted at central count locations in 40 municipalities, including Milwaukee and Green Bay.
“We want citizens to choose the option for voting that works best for them, but time is running out for those who wish to vote before Election Day,” Wolfe said. “For voters who choose to vote absentee by mail, we want to be sure they have the information they need to navigate that process in a timely fashion. And, of course, every voter who is eligible to vote in the state can also vote via IPAV or in person on Election Day.”

(The Center Square) – A new Wisconsin bill would limit government-sponsored divisions from flying certain flags.
The bill prevents flags other than the U.S. flag, Wisconsin flag, local flags and U.S. armed forces and POW/MIA flags from being flown or hung outside any state or local institution.
The bill was introduced by a group of Republicans including Rep. Jerry L. O’Connor, R-Fond du Lac, Dave Murphy, R- Greenville, Rob Brooks, R-Saukville, Joy Goeben, R-Hobart and State Sens. Dan Feyen, R-Fond du Lac, and Cory Tomczyk, R-Mosinee.
The bill points to particular flags that have led to divisiveness including those of political movements or social causes, such as MAGA, pride, heterosexual, CSA, Second Amendment rights, BLM, ALL Lives Matter, Antifa, Pro-Life, Pro-Choice and others.
The bill doesn’t prohibit any private citizens or Native American tribes from flying any flags.
“Government should not be in the business of choosing sides, or even giving the appearance of choosing sides,” said Feyen. “This bill simply ensures that the first impression of all government buildings and institutions is neutral, offering equal treatment to all Wisconsinites.”
The lawmakers said that they were asked to act on the divisiveness by Wisconsin residents.
“Flags on government buildings are not supposed to be divisive and should not support one ideology over another,” said Sen. Tomczyk, “When the governor uses flags flown over the State Capitol and other taxpayer-funded buildings to divide the people of Wisconsin, it is shameful and frankly, embarrassing. It is time to end this nonsense.”

(The Center Square) – A poll in Wisconsin’s race for the supreme court has the conservative candidate up by 5 but many voters have yet to make up their minds.
The conservative Institute for Reforming Government on Thursday released the poll that has conservative Brad Schimel up 40-35 over liberal Judge Susan Crawford.
The IRG poll says 23% of voters have not yet to decide.
The poll also asked about the issues that voters care about in the race for the supreme court.
IRG says those results show:
● 26% of voters want to ensure that judges adhere to the constitution.
● 25% of voters say crime and public safety are their biggest issues.
● 17% of voters say abortion tops their list.
● 9% of voters are worried about the power of unelected bureaucrats.
The poll also says 48% of Wisconsin voters approve of the job that supreme court is doing, while another 38% disapprove.
The poll also suggests less than half of the voters have heard about the race, with 24% of voters saying they heard about the race between Schimel and Crawford in the past week, and another 24% who said that heard about the race in the past month.
The poll was conducted by Napolitan News Service and surveyed 800 registered voters from Jan. 17-21 with a +/- 3.5% margin of error.
The race between Schimel and Crawford will determine whether the Wisconsin Supreme Court keeps its liberal majority. It is also expected to set new records for judicial spending.
The last Wisconsin Supreme Court race, in 2023, became the most expensive race ever. That race saw more than $50 million in total spending. Politicos say this year’s race could see closer to $100 million.