WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Saturday prohibited the Trump administration from proceeding with deportations under an 18th-century law that Trump had referenced only hours prior, claiming an invasion of the United States by a Venezuelan gang and asserting new authority to expel its members from the country.
The video in the player above is from a previous report.
James E. Boasberg, chief judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, stated he needed to act promptly because the government was already in the process of transporting migrants it claimed were newly eligible for deportation under Trump’s proclamation to El Salvador and Honduras for detention.
“I do not believe I can wait any longer and am required to act,” he mentioned during a Saturday evening hearing regarding a lawsuit filed by the ACLU and Democracy Forward. “A brief delay in their removal does not cause the government any harm,” Boasberg added, noting that they remain in government custody.
This ruling occurred just hours after Trump claimed the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua was invading the U.S. and invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which grants the president significant authority regarding policy and executive actions to expedite mass deportations – potentially intensifying his promised crackdown on immigration.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
WASHINGTON (AP) – Declaring that the United States was being besieged by a Venezuelan gang, President Donald Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 on Saturday, a comprehensive wartime authority that allows the president to exercise broader discretion regarding policy and executive action to accelerate mass deportations – possibly advancing his promised immigration crackdown.
Trump’s statement targets Tren de Aragua, asserting it is a hostile entity operating with the support of Venezuela’s government. His declaration coincided with a federal judge in Washington who prohibited the administration from deporting five Venezuelans under the anticipated order, suggesting a looming legal challenge to Trump’s initiative. The judge was expected to consider expanding the deportation ban immediately following Trump’s announcement.
“Over the years, Venezuelan national and local authorities have ceded greater control over their territories to transnational criminal organizations, including TdA,” Trump stated. “The result is a hybrid criminal state that is perpetrating an invasion of and predatory incursion into the United States, which poses a significant threat to the country.”
The act has most recently been utilized during World War II for the internment of Japanese-American civilians and has only been invoked two other times in U.S. history, during World War I and the War of 1812. Trump claimed in his declaration that it is warranted because he believes the Tren de Aragua gang has affiliations with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s regime.
The Tren de Aragua gang emerged from a prison in Venezuela and coincided with the exodus of millions of Venezuelans, most of whom sought better living conditions after their country’s economy disintegrated in the previous decade. Trump and his supporters have framed the gang as a representation of the alleged threats posed by undocumented immigrants in the United States and formally labeled it a “foreign terrorist organization” last month.
Authorities in various countries have reported arrests of Tren de Aragua members, even as Venezuela’s government asserts to have dismantled the criminal organization.
Trump had promised to utilize the Alien Enemies Act during his presidential campaign, and immigration advocates were prepared for such developments. This led to an unusual lawsuit filed before Trump’s declaration was even made public. The lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union and Democracy Forward was on behalf of five Venezuelans whose deportation cases were suddenly expedited.
Judge James E. Boasberg agreed to implement a temporary restraining order preventing the deportation of the five individuals in immigration custody for 14 days, preserving their status during the legal proceedings. He scheduled a hearing for later that afternoon to determine whether this order should be expanded to protect all Venezuelans residing in the United States.
Shortly after, the Trump administration appealed the initial restraining order, arguing that preventing a presidential act prior to its announcement would undermine the executive branch.
If the order were allowed to remain, “district courts would be free to suspend virtually any urgent national-security action simply upon receiving a complaint,” the Justice Department argued in its appeal.
It continued that district courts could then issue temporary restraining orders on actions like drone strikes, sensitive intelligence operations, or the capture or extradition of terrorists. The department contended that the court “should halt that path in its tracks.”
This unprecedented wave of litigation underscores the contentious nature of the act, which could bestow Trump with significant authority to deport individuals undocumented in the country. It could allow him to circumvent certain protections found in standard criminal and immigration law to swiftly deport those his administration deems to be affiliated with the gang.
The White House is preparing to transfer about 300 individuals it identifies as gang members to detention in El Salvador.
Associated Press writer Regina Garcia Cano in Caracas, Venezuela, contributed to this report.
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