Trump v. Barbara · ¶325
Third, the Court says, a person is not subject to the jurisdiction of the United States when he is a “membe[r]” of an “alien and sovereign” nation. Ante, at 5 (internal quotation marks omitted). This category reflects the Court’s attempt to accommodate the historical record that the Citizenship Clause excluded the children of Indians in tribes. See Part I–D–1–b, supra. But, the Court cannot explain why tribal Indians were not “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States if they happened to be born outside Indian lands while foreign temporary visitors were. It is true that tribal Indians belonged to “alien and sovereign” nations and that the United States’ relations with them implicated “inter- sovereign concerns.” Ante, at 12. But, temporarily visiting foreigners also belong to “alien and sovereign” nations, and the United States’ relations with them also implicate “intersovereign…Read in context ›
slip opinion, revised 7/01/26
Source edition
Passage preview. Read in context for the complete text, notes and references.