A federal appeals court has ruled against the Trump administration's attempt to use a centuries-old wartime law to quickly deport Venezuelan migrants, a move that will likely push the case to the Supreme Court. In a 2-1 decision, the Fifth Circuit panel ruled the administration's claim—that the migrants were linked to the Tren de Aragua gang and constituted an "invasion" of the United States under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798—did not meet the law's criteria.
The court noted there was no evidence of an "invasion or predatory incursion" by a foreign power, and pointedly stated that mass migration, even if encouraged by another country, is not the same as "an armed, organized force" seeking to harm the US. The Fifth Circuit's injunction only blocks deportations from Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi under this specific law, leaving the government free to pursue removal through other legal channels, reports the New York Times.
The AP reports that US Circuit Judges Leslie Southwick, a George W. Bush appointee, and Irma Carrillo Ramirez, a Joe Biden appointee, were in the majority, while Trump appointee Andrew Oldham dissented. The AP sums up Oldham's argument: that his "two colleagues were second-guessing Trump's conduct of foreign affairs and national security, realms where courts usually give the president great deference." The case can be appealed to the full Fifth Circuit or head back to the Supreme Court, which has already played a role by blocking the deportations in April and May; it has yet to consider the overarching question of whether a gang can be classified as an alien enemy under the act.
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