Trump to Invoke Wartime Authority to Increase Mass Deportation Efforts

What Happened?

President Donald Trump has readied plans to invoke a wartime law to increase mass deportation efforts and enhance security along the U.S. southern border.

According to reports, the Trump administration has conducted various discussions about invoking the Alien Enemies Act.

The 227-year-old law could be used to deport some migrants without a hearing.

It allows the president to order the arrest, detention, and deportation of noncitizens ages 14 or older who come from countries staging an 'invasion or predatory incursion' of the U.S.

The U.S. Defense Department is not expected to have a role in the invoking of the authority.

During his inaugural address, Trump said, 'By invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, I will direct our government to use the full and immense power of federal and state law enforcement to eliminate the presence of all foreign gangs and criminal networks bringing devastating crime to U.S. soil, including our cities and inner cities.'

A key target of the Trump administration is to swiftly order the detention and deportation of suspected members of a Venezuelan gang called Tren de Aragua.

The gang, with origins from prison, was reportedly designated as a foreign terrorist organization.

Preparations have been made to send those suspected members to Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. Naval Base in Cuba.

Legal experts have reportedly argued that invoking the measure could still face an uphill legal battle amid the ability to target undocumented immigrants.

Why it Matters

The Trump administration recently asked the Supreme Court to allow restrictions on birthright citizenship despite ongoing lawsuits being played out.

An emergency appeal filed on Thursday asked the higher court to narrow court orders entered by several district judges.

Three judges from Massachusetts, Washington, and Mayland temporarily blocked Trump's executive order to end the constitutional guarantee of birthright citizenship.

A total of five lawsuits so far have been reportedly filed by more than 20 states that argue Trump's order violates the 14th Amendment.

Trump has pointed to a rise in deadly narcotics and other criminal organizations that have flowed across the U.S. border illegally.

In the first 50 days of the Trump Administration, Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agents have made 32,809 arrests.

ICE agents have only made 33,242 at-large arrests in the entire fiscal year of 2024, according to Homeland Security data.

The Trump administration removed acting ICE director Caleb Vitello amid frustrations those results were not high enough.

How it Affects You

Democratic-led states have argued more than 150,000 newborn children would be denied citizenship annually if the order were to stand.

Any child born after Feb. 19 whose parents are not citizens or lawful permanent residents would be subject to deportation and prevented from obtaining Social Security numbers.

Many have acknowledged the need to address the nation's immigration system and the importance of border security.

However, the path toward achieving these goals has many worried about the issues these moves could bring concerning the U.S. Constitution.