DemDaily: SCOTUS Pauses Trump Deportation Plan
May 19, 2025
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has dealt a blow to the Trump administration's efforts to execute sweeping deportations of immigrants under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act.
The president, who invoked the law March 14 in an Executive Order (EO), has used it as a tool to deport hundreds of immigrants so far, alleging they are members of a Venezuelan crime gang and terrorists threatening national security -- therefore subject to "immediate apprehension, detention, and removal," under the Act.
Within 24 hours of the EO, Trump sent two flights carrying more than 130 alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang, including numerous innocent deportees, to the notorious Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) -- in contempt of a federal judge's order to stop the deportations.
Dozens of legal challenges contesting the constitutionality of the EO and its human rights violations are making their way through federal courts nationwide.
| The Alien Enemies Act of 1798 is a wartime authority that allows the president to detain or deport the natives and citizens of an enemy nation. The law permits the president to target these immigrants without a hearing and based only on their country of birth or citizenship. Enacted to prevent foreign espionage and sabotage in wartime, it has been invoked three times: during the War of 1812, World War I, and World War II. It is widely considered an overbroad authority that may violate constitutional rights in wartime and is subject to abuse in peacetime. |
On Friday, in the third appeal before the Supreme Court, the justices extended their injunction, originally issued on April 19, on deporting migrants in detention in northern Texas to CECOT.
The emergency petition for an injunction, filed in April by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) as a class action, was dramatically issued at 1:00am by the Court in a brief, unsigned order -- as hundreds of men were being loaded on buses to the airport.
On May 16, in W.M.M. v. Trump, the Supreme Court sent the case back to the New Orleans-based 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals for further review, saying in its order that the appeals court erred in dismissing the detainees’ appeal.
In their 7-2 unsigned opinion, the court emphasized that the men, whom the Trump administration has labeled “alien enemies,” are entitled to more due process, including more than 24 hours advance notice of their deportations and a meaningful opportunity to challenge the deportations in court.
It also instructed the appeals court to decide the underlying questions in the case: whether the president’s move is legal and, if it is, how much notice the migrants targeted under the act should receive.
The court said its order would remain in place until the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rules and the Supreme Court considers any appeal from that ruling.
Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas noted their dissents while, in a significant departure, three of their conservative brethren voted with the liberals on the court.
| Today, the Supreme Court cleared the way for the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for over 350,000 Venezuelan nationals living in the US. TPS grants legal status and work authorization for individuals who cannot return safely to their home country. A March 2025 ruling by a US District Judge blocked DHS Secretary Kristi Noem from terminating TPS for Venezuelan nationals. This morning, the Supreme Court stayed that decision, allowing the termination to move forward while the court appeals continue. |
The justices are reportedly still considering another emergency appeal by the Trump administration stemming from its efforts to revoke parole -- that is, permission for noncitizens to stay in the United States for humanitarian or public interest reasons -- for more than 500,000 noncitizens from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela.
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Sources: Politico, New York Times, Washington Post, The Guardian, CNN, SCOTUSBlog
