On Saturday, Donald Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act for the first time since World War II, granting himself extensive powers under a historic law to deport individuals connected to a Venezuelan gang. Shortly afterward, a federal judge halted any deportations resulting from the US president’s directive.
This act is a broad wartime authority that permits the deportation of noncitizens without the chance to appear before an immigration or federal court judge.
Trump’s announcement on Saturday labeled Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang as an invading force. US District Judge James Boasberg temporarily blocked deportations under this proclamation for two weeks and scheduled a hearing for Friday to hear arguments.
What are the origins of the act?
In 1798, as the US prepared for a potential war with France, Congress enacted a series of laws that expanded the federal government’s powers. Concerns about immigrants potentially sympathizing with the French led to the creation of the Alien Enemies Act, which grants the president broad authority to imprison and deport noncitizens in times of war.
Since its inception, the act has only been employed three times: during the War of 1812, World War I, and World War II.
During World War II, amidst widespread anti-foreigner sentiment, it provided a legal basis for the mass internment of individuals of German, Italian, and Japanese descent. Approximately 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry, including US citizens, were interned during this period.
Why is Trump using it now?
For years, Trump and his allies have claimed that America faces an “invasion” of individuals arriving illegally. In his inaugural address, Trump stated that the act would serve as a crucial tool in his immigration enforcement efforts.
“By invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, I will instruct our government to utilize the full and immense power of federal and state law enforcement to eradicate the presence of all foreign gangs and criminal networks that bring devastating crime to US soil,” he expressed. “As commander in chief, I hold no greater responsibility than to safeguard our country from threats and invasions.”
In his declaration on Saturday, Trump claimed that Tren de Aragua “is perpetrating, attempting, and threatening an invasion of predatory incursions against the territory of the United States.” He accused the gang of engaging in “irregular warfare” against the US under the direction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Last month, the Trump administration classified Tren de Aragua and seven other Latin American criminal organizations as “foreign terrorist organizations.”
What do critics of the move say?
Critics argue that Trump is misapplying the act to target non-state actors instead of foreign governments. Civil liberties organizations have accused Trump of unlawfully invoking the 1798 act during peacetime to hasten mass deportations and circumvent immigration law.
“Using it in peacetime to bypass standard immigration law would constitute a staggering abuse,” the Brennan Center for Justice stated, calling it “at odds with centuries of legislative, presidential, and judicial practices.”
“Summary detentions and deportations under the law clash with contemporary interpretations of equal protection and due process,” they added.
A report from Congress’s research arm indicated that officials might leverage the foreign terrorist designations to argue that the gang’s activities in the US represent a limited invasion. “This theory appears to be unprecedented and has not undergone judicial review,” the Congressional Research Service noted.
Typically, the Venezuelan government has not cooperated in repatriating its citizens from the US, except for a few instances. Recently, around 350 individuals were deported to Venezuela, including approximately 180 who had spent up to 16 days at the Guantanamo Bay naval base.
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