On Thursday, the Supreme Court appeared likely to uphold the block on President Trump's restrictions regarding citizenship by birth, while also seeking methods to limit the reach of nationwide court orders.

It wasn't clear exactly what the decision would involve, but most of the court worried about the possible effects if the Trump administration was allowed, even for a short time, to refuse citizenship to children born in the US to undocumented parents.

The judges listened to arguments in the Trump administration's urgent appeals against rulings that have blocked the citizenship limits nationwide.

Nationwide injunctions have become a key way to control Trump's attempts to change the government, but they are also making the Republican president and his supporters increasingly annoyed.

Since January, when Trump started his second term, judges have made 40 nationwide injunctions, according to Solicitor General D. John Sauer, who informed the court at the beginning of a more than two-hour discussion.

The administration has urgently asked the court to consider birthright citizenship, along with other immigration-related matters, as key issues requiring immediate attention.

A case like this could be filed and dealt with quickly, and might even have effects across the whole country.

However, when questioned by Justice Amy Coney Barrett and others, Sauer suggested the Trump administration might not support such a lawsuit, or could even try to delay class action cases.

It's unusual for the Supreme Court to hear arguments about emergency appeals; they typically focus on the main issues of a case.

However, the government didn't request the court to address the broader question at this time. Should the court agree with the government regarding nationwide injunctions, it remains uncertain how long differing regulations on citizenship would affect children born in the US.

They should make a decision by the end of June.