WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Trump administration on Friday petitioned the Supreme Court for permission to resume deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act, an 18th-century wartime law, as legal battles continue.
The emergency appeal comes after a federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., rejected the administration’s request to lift an order temporarily blocking the deportations. The appellate court’s 2-1 decision allowed the order to remain in place, halting the removals of Venezuelan migrants under the rarely invoked Alien Enemies Act.
The Justice Department argued in court filings that federal courts should not interfere with sensitive diplomatic negotiations. It also stated that detained migrants should seek legal recourse in Texas, where they are currently held.
U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg, the chief judge at the federal courthouse in Washington, issued the order preventing deportations. President Donald Trump’s administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act for the first time since World War II, citing a presidential proclamation labeling the Tren de Aragua gang an invading force.
“Here, the district court’s orders have rebuffed the President’s judgments as to how to protect the Nation against foreign terrorist organizations and risk debilitating effects for delicate foreign negotiations,” acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris wrote in the court filing.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit on behalf of five Venezuelan noncitizens detained in Texas shortly after the presidential proclamation was announced. The court set a Tuesday deadline for a response from the ACLU.
Lee Gelernt, lead attorney for the ACLU, said, “We will urge the Supreme Court to preserve the status quo to give the courts time to hear this case, so that more individuals are not sent off to a notorious foreign prison without any process, based on an unprecedented and unlawful use of a wartime authority.”
The legal battle has intensified tensions between the White House and federal courts. Boasberg previously ordered a temporary halt on deportations and instructed planeloads of Venezuelan migrants to return to the U.S., a directive that was not followed. The administration has cited “state secrets privilege” and declined to provide additional details on the deportations.
Calls for Boasberg’s impeachment from Trump and his allies were met with a rare statement from Chief Justice John Roberts, who asserted, “Impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision.”
The Alien Enemies Act permits deportations without hearings before immigration or federal court judges. However, Boasberg ruled that immigrants facing deportation must have the opportunity to challenge their designation as alleged gang members.
“There is a strong public interest in preventing the mistaken deportation of people based on categories they have no right to challenge,” Boasberg wrote.
The temporary ban on deportations is set to expire on Saturday, but the ACLU has requested an extension until April 12 and intends to seek a preliminary injunction to prevent further deportations under the Alien Enemies Act while the lawsuit continues.
