Trump Administration Not Backing Down in Legal Fight Over Deportation Flights

The legal fight over whether President Trump can deport members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua in defiance of a federal judge’s order, appears to be just beginning and experts warn it could portend a constitutional crisis. 

It started when the president used the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to round up suspected gang members and put them on planes to El Salvador (Venezuela typically does not accept citizens deported by the U.S.).

Advocates sued on behalf of the migrants and U.S. District Judge James Boasberg agreed, ordering the planes to turn back to the U.S. But the administration ignored the order and the planes landed in El Salvador. 

The White House said the flights were over international waters so the ruling did not apply. White House lawyers also pointed out the ruling was given orally. 

The 1798 Alien Enemies Act gives the executive branch the power to deport noncitizens without a hearing. Use during peacetime is unprecedented. It was last used during World War II.   

Back and Forth

For his part, Judge Boasberg chastised administration lawyers during a hearing. “You’re saying that you felt you could disregard it? Because it wasn’t in the written order?” asked Judge Boasberg. 

Deputy Associate Attorney General Abhishek Kambli replied that the administration believes “there was no order given” because the written order is what controls things and an oral order from the bench is not enforceable. 

Not Backing Down

The administration shows no signs of backing down, ordering deportation plans to go ahead. 

“Under the President’s direction, his administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act to initiate the removal of hundreds of dangerous members of Tren de Aragua (TdA), a vicious and violent Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), which has been threatening our nation, conducting irregular warfare, and terrorizing Americans,” said Secretary of State Marco Rubio. 

And Attorney General Pam Bondi says the deportation flights will continue. 

“These are foreign terrorists, that the president has identified them, and designated them as such, and we will continue to follow the Alien Enemies Act,” AG Bondi said on Fox News. 

Brewing Tensions Between Executive, Judiciary

All this points to the “art of true constitutional crisis,” according to Attorney Mark Zaid. 

To add to the tensions, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts gave a rare public statement, rebuking President Trump’s call for Judge Boasberg to be impeached. 

“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose," said Chief Justice Roberts.