US Attorney General Claims District Judge Lacks Authority to Inquire About Flight Deportation Matters

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi stated that a federal judge who barred the Trump administration from using the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport illegal immigrants has “no right” to raise questions regarding flights transporting deported individuals.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg had set a deadline for the Trump administration until Tuesday to answer his inquiries concerning deportation flights with alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang. This gang was classified as a foreign terrorist organization by the administration last month. The judge postponed the deadline by an additional day, allowing the government until Thursday to respond.

However, Bondi asserted to Fox News on Wednesday that such inquiries are inappropriate, insisting the judge possesses “no right” to question the government or to compel it to reroute those flights back to the United States. She expressed her belief that “liberal” judges are issuing orders on subjects outside their jurisdiction.

As the deadline approached on Wednesday, Bondi asserted that Boasberg had no “business, no power” to mandate the administration to return the flights. She claimed that it has become a “pattern” for liberal judges to impose orders beyond their jurisdiction.

The attorney general indicated that the Trump administration will persist in executing deportation flights for Tren de Aragua members unlawfully residing in the United States.

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“We are going to deport them, and we will continue to deport them. We will comply with the court’s ruling, but we will appeal, and we will persist in combating terrorism within our borders,” Bondi stated, noting that attorneys from the Department of Justice (DOJ) “are actively working on this” case and “will appropriately respond” to Judge Boasberg’s inquiries.

Her comments on Wednesday represent the latest escalation in a standoff between the federal government and the judge, who has temporarily halted deportations under the Alien Enemies Act. President Donald Trump has called for the judge’s impeachment, while other administration officials have contended that the judge has overstepped his authority in preventing the government from addressing what it describes as national security issues and foreign policy.

The judge has raised concerns regarding whether the Trump administration disregarded his court order issued on Saturday to redirect planes carrying deportees to El Salvador, which has consented to detain them in a prison. A post from Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele on X indicated that his government received the deportees, remarking, “too late,” alluding to the judge’s original directive.

In court documents filed on Wednesday, the DOJ mentioned it was contemplating invoking the “state secrets privilege” to permit the government to withhold certain information requested by the court.

“The fundamental premise of these orders … is that the Judicial Branch is superior to the Executive Branch, especially on non-legal issues concerning foreign affairs and national security. The Government disagrees,” wrote DOJ lawyers. “The two branches are co-equal, and the Court’s ongoing incursions into the prerogatives of the Executive Branch, particularly on a non-legal and factually irrelevant issue, should cease.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed to reporters during a Monday briefing that 261 individuals were deported, including 137 under the Alien Enemies law.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.