WA AG calls Trump orders ‘gravely concerning’

Washington Attorney General Nick Brown said his office was reviewing the crop of executive orders signed by newly sworn-in President Donald Trump on Monday, calling them “gravely concerning” and saying they “pose significant harm to thousands of Washingtonians.”

Brown, a Democrat sworn in last week as the state’s top lawyer, said in a news release that he and his staff were reviewing the orders “on their legal and constitutional merits.”

He said there was “plenty to be concerned about” the orders that Trump has already signed, which span issues from immigration to offshore wind. One of Trump’s orders would end automatic citizenship for babies born in the U.S. to immigrants here without authorization or here lawfully but temporarily. Birthright citizenship stems from the 14th Amendment, and the constitutionality of Trump’s order is expected to face a court challenge.

“We will carefully analyze the orders and determine what legal action is appropriate,” Brown said Monday evening. “Some examples, such as the president’s attack on birthright citizenship, are not only unconstitutional on their face, but simply un-American.”

Brown said the attorney general’s office has been researching case law, Project 2025 and other documents, and working with colleagues in other states to prepare.

“We are prepared and committed to using the full power of the Attorney General’s Office to enforce Washington’s laws, to protect people’s rights, and to keep Washingtonians safe,” he said. “We will uphold the law and we will fight when called upon for our shared values.”

Brown’s predecessor as AG, Bob Ferguson, now the state’s governor, sued the Trump administration dozens of times during the president’s first term.