Legal expert reveals why centuries-old law is crucial for Trump admin in immigration fight

Fox News

12-05-2025

As the Alien Enemies Act continues to be a focal point of the immigration debate in the early days of President Donald Trump's second term, Republican attorney Mehek Cooke told Fox News Digital about why the White House is making use of the 1798 law.
Some federal judges have disagreed with the Trump administration's decision to use the act to send suspected MS-13 and Tren De Aragua gang members outside the United States, including to El Salvador's CECOT prison. Trump designated those two groups as foreign terrorist organizations shortly after taking office.
"Under this act, it allows us to detain, apprehend, and deport alien enemies," Cooke said.
"This immediately allowed under the Alien Enemies Act for President Trump and his administration to accelerate deportations of individuals from Venezuela and gang members," she later added.
Earlier last week, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg asked the Justice Department about public comments Trump and other Cabinet officials made about deportation proceedings under the Alien Enemies Act and floated the idea of moving some migrants to Guantánamo Bay.
During the hearing, Boasberg specifically pressed Justice Department lawyers about statements made by Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem about CECOT, the maximum-security prison in El Salvador where the U.S. has deported hundreds of migrants, and the White House's ability to secure someone's release.
Cooke noted that the debate over due process has to do with the perspective of who gets those rights in the U.S.
"I think today, when we talk about due process, people have to understand there's American citizens that deserve due process under our Constitution," she said.
"There's illegal aliens that are in our country that we have given a sliding scale of due process. And then there are terrorists that deserve very little process, as we're expediting their removal. Our immigration judges and our courts don't have enough time to stand there with every single individual that's a Tren de Aragua member and bicker back and forth," Cooke continued.
The Republican attorney said that from her perspective, many federal judges are questioning the president's ability to actually decide what is considered an alien enemy.
"What's happening today is courts through judicial activism are actually challenging that. So what they're saying is that the president can't designate somebody an alien enemy. They can't designate Tren de Aragua an alien enemy. And more importantly, courts are pushing and saying that these individuals that are illegal terrorists in our country deserve due process," Cooke explained.