Trump Invokes Alien Enemies Act to Combat Venezuelan Gang
On a momentous Saturday, former President Donald Trump made an unparalleled move, invoking the Alien Enemies Act, a law dating back to World War II. This powerful measure, last employed during a time of pervasive global conflict, allowed for the expulsion of individuals affiliated with a specific Venezuelan gang. Merely hours following this historically infrequent course of action, a federal judge issued a countermanding order temporarily putting a stop to the deportations displacing individuals under the authority of Trump’s command.
The Alien Enemies Act, imbued with extensive wartime jurisdiction, permits the removal of non-citizens without the need for a hearing before an immigration or federal court judge. Throughout his presidential campaign, Trump had hinted at adopting such extraordinary measures to tackle the issue of illegal immigration. This groundwork culminated in his issuance of numerous executive orders on Jan. 20.
Turning these hints into reality, Trump marked the Tren de Aragua gang from Venezuela as an invading entity on the aforementioned Saturday. Following this declaration, U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg imposed a fortnight obstruction, preventing any person from being deported under Trump’s directive, with the case scheduled for further consideration at a Friday hearing.
The inception of the Alien Enemies Act can be traced back to 1798, a time when the U.S. was bracing for a potential conflict with France. Amid fears of immigrants aligning sympathies with France, Congress passed a set of laws bolstering the federal government’s influence. This act gave the president to imprison or expel non-citizens during a war.
The Alien Enemies Act has been invoked on scant occasions – the War of 1812, World War I, and World War II. Preemptively moving against Trump’s recent usage of the act, the American Civil Liberties Union and Democracy Forward filed a lawsuit in a federal court on the preceding Friday. The litigation was filed on behalf of five Venezuelan men in an immigration detention center, proponents arguing that their removal under the act was an imminent concern.
Judge Boasberg’s ruling resulted in halting the deportation of these individuals, a move which immediately sparked a resolute appeal from the Justice Department. This became a part of the larger discourse around immigration, including negotiations between Nayib Bukele, El Salvador’s president, and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Their discussions revolved around the possibility of accommodating migrants in El Salvador’s infamous prisons.
El Salvador, under Bukele’s administration, has witnessed a significant curb in gang-related violence, rallying authoritative measures that led to the arrest of over 84,000 individuals since 2022, sometimes irrespective of due process. The decisions made under the discussed agreement would require any relevant flights to be rerouted midway back to the United States, as asserted by Judge Boasberg.
Illegal border crossings into the U.S. from Mexico reached unprecedentedly high levels during President Joe Biden’s administration, with over 2 million instances registered consecutively for two years. A significant proportion of these individuals were permitted to freely move within the U.S., seeking asylum.
The Tren de Aragua gang, identified in Trump’s proclamation as an imminent threat, has a notorious origin story. It began in an infamous prison within Venezuela’s Aragua state, a place known for its lawlessness. Coinciding with a mass exodus of Venezuelans due to the country’s failing economy, the gang’s presence grew over the last decade, spreading as the majority of these Venezuelan migrants sought improved living conditions.
Understanding the gravity, over the previous weeks, about 350 individuals were deported back to Venezuela. Although the reason for these deportations was not explicitly stated, it didn’t seem disconnected from the larger narrative of the country’s immigration issues that have surfaced over time.