Trump Invokes 1798 Alien Enemies Act to Expedite Deportation of Venezuelan Gang Members

On March 15, President Donald Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which permits the rapid deportation of foreigners during times of war or invasion. He ordered the immediate arrest and expulsion from the United States of all Venezuelan nationals identified as members of the Tren de Aragua gang, now classified as “alien enemies.”

In the proclamation, Trump claims that numerous members of the group have illegally entered the United States and are “engaging in irregular warfare and conducting hostile actions” against the nation.

Trump asserted that Tren de Aragua “is committing, attempting, and threatens an invasion or predatory incursion against the territory of the United States.”

“I direct that all Alien Enemies referenced in section 1 of this proclamation are to be immediately apprehended, detained, and removed, and that they shall not be allowed to reside in the United States,” the proclamation states, further instructing Attorney General Pam Bondi to inform judicial members that this policy is now officially endorsed by the United States.

Shortly after Trump issued the proclamation, a federal judge temporarily halted it. Chief Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia provisionally certified all noncitizens in U.S. custody affected by Trump’s proclamation and granted a temporary restraining order preventing their removal for at least 14 days.

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“The Government is PROHIBITED from removing members of such class (not otherwise subject to removal) pursuant to the Proclamation for 14 days or until further Order of the Court,” stated Boasberg. He set a deadline of March 17 for the government to file a motion to vacate the temporary restraining order, with a hearing set for March 21.

This ruling represents an initial legal challenge to Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act, a rarely employed law dating back to the administration of John Adams, setting the path for further court disputes regarding the administration’s deportation initiatives.

The president’s move to invoke the Alien Enemies Act for the expedited deportation of Tren de Aragua members has already faced a legal challenge from civil rights organizations and a temporary injunction from a federal judge.

In suspending the deportation of the five Venezuelan individuals for two weeks, the judge concluded that the plaintiffs met the requisite for preliminary relief, identifying a likelihood of success on the merits, and potential irreparable harm if deported.

The judge scheduled a March 17 hearing to decide if his temporary restraining order should transition into a preliminary injunction, which could indefinitely block the deportations as the case unfolds.

The White House did not respond to a request for commentary on the ruling. However, Trump declared an “invasion” at the southern border on his first day in office, a classification that could significantly affect the legal discourse surrounding the administration’s deployment of the Alien Enemies Act for prompt deportations with minimal due process.

The president further claimed that the “invasion” has resulted in “extensive chaos and suffering” in the United States and presents a “current danger and imminent threat” to U.S. communities, ordering military and Homeland Security to take swift action to secure the border.

Conversely, the ACLU and Democracy Forward argue in their lawsuit that the United States is neither at war with Venezuela nor facing an invasion from a foreign entity, rendering the Trump administration’s recourse to the Alien Enemies Act for the deportation of five Venezuelan nationals—alleged members of Tren de Aragua—illegitimate.

“The ambiguity and expansiveness of the anticipated Proclamation, alongside the government’s disorganized approach to accusing individuals of affiliation with Tren de Aragua, will certainly lead to fear and uncertainty about the Proclamation’s reach and will inhibit immigrants in their everyday activities and the exercise of their fundamental constitutional rights,” the ACLU and Democracy Forward stated in their complaint.

They characterize Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act as an “extraordinary and atextual invocation of a war power” that is unwarranted as it arises outside of an actual or imminent war, contending that this action even threatens “the broader stability of the United States’ legal structure.”

Since assuming office, Trump has taken decisive actions regarding immigration enforcement, including mandating federal agencies to promptly act to repel and remove illegal immigrants who trespass on U.S. territory.

The last documented use of the Alien Enemies Act was by President Franklin D. Roosevelt during World War II, following the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, which resulted in the internment of Japanese, German, and Italian Americans. These internment camps have since faced significant condemnation from civil rights organizations.

Joshua Treviño, chief transformation officer at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a conservative think tank, noted that two conditions must be satisfied to invoke the act.

Firstly, there must exist a war, invasion, or predatory incursion into U.S. territory. Secondly, the act of hostility must originate from a foreign government.

Treviño suggested that if an organization—like a cartel or foreign gang—can endanger Americans on U.S. soil while functioning under the auspices of a foreign state, it could be considered as effectively invading the nation.

“They indeed do have state support. In many instances, they are agents of the state,” Treviño commented to The Epoch Times in a previous discussion, in reference to Mexican drug cartels.

The courts’ ultimate perspective on Trump’s invocation of war powers to deport Tren de Aragua members remains uncertain. Nevertheless, the president articulated in his proclamation that Tren de Aragua is closely associated with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s regime and assists Maduro in “destabilizing democratic nations across the Americas, including the United States.”

Over the years, Venezuela has increasingly surrendered authority to transnational criminal groups like Tren de Aragua, Trump argued, calling the nation a “hybrid criminal state” that is presently conducting an invasion of the United States.

In his proclamation, Trump asserted that evidence “unquestionably shows” that Tren de Aragua has invaded the United States and continues to do so while also engaging in irregular warfare against the country on behalf of the Maduro administration.

Darlene McCormick Sanchez contributed to this report.