US Supreme Court allows Trump admin to deport Venezuelans under wartime law

The 5-4 decision by the Supreme Court states that Venezuelan migrants must be given an opportunity to challenge their deportation before being removed from the US

The US Supreme Court on Monday (local time) overturned a lower court order that had blocked the Donald Trump administration from deporting Venezuelan migrants under the 18th-century Alien Enemies Act.

 

In a 5–4 decision, the Court ruled that Venezuelan migrants must be granted an opportunity to challenge their deportation before removal. It further stated that the Trump administration must allow migrants reasonable time to access the courts, with legal proceedings to be held in Texas—close to the immigration detention facility—rather than in Washington.

 

The ruling follows an emergency appeal filed by the Trump administration, contesting a federal appeals court order in Washington that had temporarily halted the deportations of migrants allegedly affiliated with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.

 

 

According to an Associated Press report, the case has become a flashpoint in rising tensions between the White House and the federal judiciary.

 

Reacting to the ruling on his private social media platform, Truth Social, Trump wrote:

 

“The Supreme Court has upheld the Rule of Law in our Nation by allowing a President, whoever that may be, to be able to secure our Borders, and protect our families and our Country.”

 

What has happened so far

 

On March 14, Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act—its first use since World War II. Within 24 hours, over 130 Venezuelans were deported to a prison in El Salvador, despite a US judge ordering the planes carrying them to return.

 

James Boasberg, a district court judge in Washington DC, had earlier blocked President Trump’s attempt to invoke the Alien Enemies Act. The rarely used wartime law gives presidents sweeping powers to deport non-citizens during wartime. Following Trump’s move last month, Boasberg extended a temporary restraining order until 12 April.

 

Trump had long vowed to use the obscure law to crack down on undocumented immigrants.

 

What is Alien Enemies Act?

 

The Alien Enemies Act is a US law that permits the president to detain, relocate, or deport nationals from a country with which the US is at war or facing invasion.

 

The law was enacted during the presidency of John Adams and has been used only three times in US history—during the War of 1812 and the two World Wars.

 

(With agency inputs)