Latest news with #AlienandSeditionActs
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The Alien Enemies Act Doesn't Say What Trump Claims It Says
President Donald Trump claims that the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 grants him the power to deport certain Venezuelan-born aliens without due process, based on the mere allegation of membership in a criminal street gang. But the text of the Alien Enemies Act does not allow the president to do anything of the sort. "Whenever there shall be a declared war between the United States and any foreign nation or government, or any invasion or predatory incursion shall be perpetrated, attempted, or threatened against the territory of the United States, by any foreign nation or government," the act states, the president may direct the "removal" of "all natives, citizens, denizens, or subjects of the hostile nation or government, being males of the age of fourteen years and upwards, who shall be within the United States, and not actually naturalized." The crimes of the alleged members of the street gang Tren de Aragua do not meet this legal standard. There is no "declared war" between the United States and Venezuela, and there is no "invasion or predatory incursion" of the U.S. by "any foreign nation or government." The gang is not a foreign state, and the gang's alleged crimes, heinous as they may be, do not qualify as acts of war by a foreign state. Trump's frequent talk about a rhetorical "invasion" of the U.S. by undocumented immigrants utterly fails to satisfy the law's requirements. The fatal defects of Trump's position are further illuminated when you compare his stance with James Madison's "Report of 1800," which critiqued the Alien and Sedition Acts. (The Alien Enemies Act was one of the three laws that comprised the Alien and Sedition Acts.) As Madison explained, there are two categories of "offences for which aliens within the jurisdiction" of the United States "are punishable." The first category involves "offences committed by the nation of which they make a part, and in whose offences they are involved." In this case, "the offending nation can no otherwise be punished than by war." In other words, the aliens are citizens of an offending nation that has committed an act of war against the United States. The aliens who fall within this category are "alien enemies." The second category involves offenses committed by aliens "themselves alone, without any charge against the nation to which they belong." In this case, "the offence being committed by the individual, not by his nation, and against the municipal law, not against the law of nations; the individual only, and not the nation is punishable; and the punishment must be conducted according to the municipal law, not according to the law of nations." The aliens who fall within this second category are "alien friends." Notice that "alien friends" may certainly be punished by the normal U.S. legal system for whatever crimes they commit while on U.S. soil. They may be deprived of their life, their liberty, and their property. But—and this is a big but—they may only be deprived of life, liberty, or property after they have received due process of law, which is what the Constitution guarantees to all persons, not just to all citizens. Madison's definition of "alien friends" plainly applies to any noncitizen alleged to be a member of Tren de Aragua. That person's alleged criminal activity was "committed by the individual, not by his nation, and against the municipal law, not against the law of nations." Any such alleged gang member is therefore entitled to receive due process of law before he is punished, including when the proper punishment for him is deportation. It should perhaps go without saying, but I will say it anyway for the sake of clarity: In any contest between Madison's view of presidential power and Trump's view of presidential power, the Madisonian view undoubtedly deserves to prevail. The post The Alien Enemies Act Doesn't Say What Trump Claims It Says appeared first on
IOL News
23-05-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
Trump's Deportations Betray American Ideals
On the 20th of January 2025, Donald Trump was inaugurated for his second and final term as President of the United States, the 'leader of the free world'. However, today there are few characteristics that can define the USA as free, especially for non-white citizens or migrants. Over the 115 days in his Presidency the dynamics of the current world order has adjusted relationships and methods of operations almost on a daily occurrence. Most notably there have been an ongoing series of tariffs imposed on various sectors, commodities and countries. Some brief examples include steel and aluminum, cars, films, computers and smartphones. The countries that have received tariffs include China, Mexico, Canada and the UK. The justification for these substantial measures is centered in nationalism, by advancing domestically produced goods and eliminating the perception of being 'cheated' by foreign entities. However, this rhetoric of being excluded and not understanding the real impact behind tariffs is not being extended to targeting human beings. This has resulted in the deportation of 142,000 individuals between the 20th of January and the 29th of April. Furthermore, to add insult to injury, in March President Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act which allows the president to detain or deport natives and citizens of an 'enemy' nation. The use of this legislation is not only outdated, imposed outside of its jurisdiction, but is also dangerous to countless individuals and their families. The law originally was designed for wartime threats as part of the Alien and Sedition Acts, aimed to strengthen national security against tension with France during the Quasi-War. These actions pose major concerns beginning with the fact that the law invoked outside of a declared war circumvents the strides that human rights standards have made, racially profiling individuals and potentially leans on being unconstitutional for mass deportation without due process. Bypassing the legal safeguards for individuals and labeling them as 'enemies' raises red flags for future immigration and asylum scenarios, leaving one to ponder who is the real enemy whom tears families apart across borders, and oftentimes to lands that they have no affiliation with, such as the case with over 100 Venezuelans who are believed to be located in Cecot, a massive prison in El Salvador. To exacerbate the challenges, third-country detentions raise significant problems revolving around accountability and legal responsibility, especially considering that according to the families, the detainees are being treated and labelled as violent criminals and terrorists without any court judgements. Furthermore, there is yet to be an official publicised list of detainees from the US or Salvadoran authorities, while their legal statuses remain unclear. Such secrecy is extremely concerning because of the human rights abuses, legal responsibility, as well as the moral and political consequences for the US's global standing. For much of President Trump's campaigning he emphasised that he is 'for the people', yet such actions towards the Venezuelans and Salavorans directly opposes the president's declaration, the actions damage the US's credibility as a defender of human rights and its democratic values, and may further weaken the already strained relationship the country has with other Latin American countries. Moreover, there are reports that for many of these detainees, they were not informed of the intention behind the US's government to deport them to a third country where many were denied access to legal counsel, thereby disenfranchising a fair opportunity to contest their deportation, effectively constituting a forced expulsion. Family members of the detainees are without any information about their loved ones' whereabouts and this highlights the US's severe lack in transparency and accountability. The president of the USA has a very colourful legal past in his personal capacity, with slogans of 'Make America Great Again', can one truly be surprised what foreign individuals are being treated with this level of disdain and dehumanisation, particularly from a country that has been built off of slavery and immigrants? But as a global community, what are we doing for these people and for those whose stories have not yet seen the front pages of our newspapers? The reality is the world has a tendency to look to powerful Western countries such as the USA as pillars of moral, political and just practice, but it could be argued that these foundational principles are only applied when it is convenient. The concept of a 'leader of the free world' is incompatible with practices that undermine individuals' presumption of innocence and result in criminalisation without due process; human rights should not be contingent on nationality or immigration status. Given these actions, the future of America's global image as a defender of human rights and the people will be very contentious. By Banthati Sekwala: Associate at BRICS+ Consulting Group Egyptian and South African Specialist **The Views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of Independent Media or IOL. ** MORE ARTICLES ON OUR WEBSITE ** Follow @brics_daily on Twitter for daily BRICS+ updates
Epoch Times
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Epoch Times
Intelligence Report Finds Minimal Ties Between Maduro, Tren de Aragua
A National Intelligence Council report released to the public on May 6 seems to contradict President Donald Trump's claims that the gang Tren de Aragua (TdA) is coordinating with the Venezuelan socialist regime, a claim that has been key to Trump's efforts to use the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 against the group. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) Rather, the report said, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's regime 'treats TDA as a threat.' On March 17, Trump issued a That legislation, part of the Alien and Sedition Acts enacted during the naval quasi-war between the United States and France, authorizes the president to 'apprehend, restrain, secure and remove, as alien enemies' citizens of a hostile nation during declared wars or times of invasion. Trump immediately faced legal challenges over the push, with critics questioning the extent of the ties between TdA and the Venezuelan regime. Related Stories 3/22/2025 3/22/2025 In spite of its broad assessment that cooperation between the criminal gang and Maduro is minimal, the report found that there are sometimes 'ad-hoc' examples of regime officials working with TdA for certain ends within the country. 'Maduro regime leadership probably sometimes tolerates TDA's presence in Venezuela, and some government officials may cooperate with TDA for financial gain,' the report said. The report said that these relationships 'have been ad-hoc and reportedly driven by the regime's desire for help controlling territory or deterring a perceived threat of invasion, or for individual financial gain.' It added that the Maduro regime tends to allow criminal organizations to operate within Venezuela but 'does combat and seek to contain them when it fears they could destabilize the regime or when corrupt deals sour.' In part, the report said, this is a result of Venezuela's inability to control its entire territory. 'Some mid- to low-level Venezuelan officials probably profit from TDA's illicit activities,' the report added. 'For example, local military officials have alerted other armed and criminal groups conducting aerial drug shipments to Venezuelan Air Force patrols and might have alerted TDA leadership of a planned raid in 2023 against the prison that was its base of operations.' Still, in the wake of the May 6 report, the White House maintains that ties exist between the two groups which justify implementing the Alien Enemies Act. 'The Office of the Director of National Intelligence fully supports the assessment that the foreign terrorist organization, Tren De Aragua, is acting with the support of the Maduro Regime, and thus subject to arrest, detention, and removal as alien enemies of the United States,' a White House spokesperson told The Epoch Times, with emphasis added. In the A federal judge
News.com.au
28-04-2025
- Politics
- News.com.au
Donald Trump's efforts to ‘wrest power' from America's courts and Congress ‘unprecedented' and ‘authoritarian in nature'
Donald Trump's disregard for the rule of law and attempts to hoard power for himself are 'truly alarming' and 'authoritarian in nature', an expert has warned. And they are escalating. Dr Kathryn Schumaker, a senior lecturer in American Studies for the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney, told the Trump administration had spent its first months trying to 'wrest away power' from Congress and the courts. 'The disregard the Trump administration has for the rule of law is truly alarming, and it is on a scale that has never been seen before in US politics,' Dr Schumaker told 'Other presidents have ignored the courts – Andrew Jackson's policy toward Native Americans is the clearest example. 'But the sheer number of executive orders issued by Trump that attempt to dictate law and policy, where the executive branch does not have that authority, is unprecedented.' 'A clear violation': Trump's most brazen move It's most blatant in the administration's immigration policies. Dr Schumaker pointed, in particular, to Mr Trump's invocation of the Alien Enemies Act, a law from 1798, to justify his deportation of migrants without due process. 'His administration is claiming sweeping authority under the executive's war powers by making specious claims that the US is being 'invaded' by immigrants and fentanyl,' said Dr Schumaker, adding that the Alien and Sedition Acts were 'highly controversial' even in the era during which they was passed. The Enemies Act has only been used three times before, during the War of 1812, World War I and World War II. 'Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, and James Madison, who wrote the US Constitution, were some of the most vocal critics of it as an unconstitutional overreach of federal power,' she said. 'Jefferson and Madison argued that these laws were so abhorrent to the letter and spirit of the US Constitution that states had the authority to nullify and refuse to enforce them.' In this case, the obvious problem is the Trump administration invoking a wartime law when the United States is not, in fact, at war. 'Trump's executive orders have had devastating consequences in many areas, but the human cost of these policies is most apparent in immigration. Trumps administration is disregarding basic constitutional rights, including the right to due process of law,' said Dr Shumaker. 'Every person in the United States is supposed to be afforded the right to due process, regardless of immigration or citizenship status, per the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution. 'We have seen what happens when people are denied due process – Juan Abrego Garcia was wrongfully deported and is incarcerated in El Salvador, and over the weekend the news broke that, evidently, a two-year-old US citizen was deported to Honduras.' The two-year-old in question has an American father and Honduran mother. It seems the Trump administration deported the toddler with her mother and 11-year-old sister. A hearing has been scheduled for May to deal with a judge's 'strong suspicion the government just deported a US citizen with no meaningful process'. Mr Abrego Garcia was sent to El Salvador, where he is now being held in the country's notorious Cecot megaprison, otherwise known as the Terrorism Confinement Centre. He had been an illegal immigrant to the United States, but was later subject to a court order forbidding the government from deporting him, due to fears for his safety in El Salvador. The government has conceded, in court, that he was deported due to an 'administrative error', but the White House has indicated it has no intention of bringing him back – a stance that also defies court orders. He is married to a US citizen, with whom he shares a disabled child. 'Things like this are happening because the Trump administration is loading people on planes before a court can determine whether the deportation is legal or not,' said Dr Shumaker. 'This is lawless behaviour on the part of immigration officials. It is a clear violation of the principle of due process of law.' 'Authoritarian in nature' Immigration, of course, is not the only area of government conduct at issue here. For example, the Constitution explicitly gives Congress, not the executive branch, power over federal government spending. The DOGE team appointed by Mr Trump is asserting a right to cut that spending unilaterally, and to shut down congressionally approved programs. So that's a usurpation of the legislative branch's powers. Trump officials have kept asserting that Mr Trump, not the court system, should be the ultimate authority on which actions taken by his administration are constitutional. That is a usurpation of the judicial branch's powers. 'Trump's actions are authoritarian in nature,' Dr Shumaker said. 'His administration is attempting to consolidate power in the executive branch, wresting away power from the courts and especially from Congress. I do not think Congress is doing enough to assert its authority to check the Trump administration. 'Immigration is a clear example of this. Congress can and should legislate in this area – but the same is true for the massive funding cuts that the administration has made via DOGE and other avenues. 'Congress holds the power of the purse. These are funds that were allocated by Congress, and yet the Trump Administration is acting as if the executive branch holds that power. 'The judiciary and the legislative branch can and should rebuke this, but the Trump administration seems determined to ignore judicial rulings and statutory law. This is why critics have accused the administration of authoritarian impulses.' Anti-judge campaign 'escalates' There is an unmistakeable hostility, from both Mr Trump himself and the rest of his administration, towards judges who rule against him. This isn't new – the President has been calling certain judges corrupt since he entered politics. But the rhetoric is getting harsher, while the administration is threatening to act. In the past few days, for example, the FBI arrested Hannah Dugan, a judge in Wisconsin. It claims she obstructed the arrest of an illegal immigrant. This arrest was accompanied by what might be described as a concerted PR campaign. 'What is happening to our courts is beyond me,' said Attorney-General Pam Bondi, America's top law enforcement officer. 'They're deranged.' No one is above the law — FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) April 26, 2025 Dr Schumaker agreed that this arrest marked 'a significant escalation'. 'It seems that Trump is not satisfied to have appointed a huge number of federal judges and three Supreme Court justices – he is also attempting to intimidate the entire judiciary. It seems the administration hopes other judges, fearful for their own personal safety, will rule in ways that give Trump yet more power,' she said. Too many Americans 'not bothered' You may read this wondering why Australians should care about the Trump administration, across the Atlantic, pushing these longstanding boundaries. 'These issues already affect anyone on a visa attempting to enter the US or stay there,' said Dr Schumaker. 'We have already seen stories of visas and permanent residency being revoked, as has happened to university student protesters who are critical of Israel's actions in Gaza. But we have also seen stories of Australians being detained and deported without a clear reason. 'There's a bigger issue, too, of how the actions of the Trump administration might embolden other right-wing parties and undermine democracies in other parts of the world.' Meanwhile, the fact that so many Americans seem to not be particularly 'bothered' by this 'authoritarian streak' will make Mr Trump's power grabs harder to restrain. 'Even though the Trump administration's actions are shocking to many observers, it seems that a large portion of Americans are not bothered by what is happening,' she noted. 'His approval rating is falling, but the most recent AP/NORC poll shows that 46 per cent of Americans polled approve of his immigration policy. That's nearly half of everyone polled! It appears that many Americans are not bothered by Trump's authoritarian streak. 'I think this shows just how fragile US democracy is at the moment. If such a large proportion of people don't think the rule of law matters, then it's going to be very difficult for an effective response to come through traditional political mechanisms.'
Daily Telegraph
28-04-2025
- Politics
- Daily Telegraph
Donald Trump's efforts to ‘wrest power' are ‘unprecedented' and ‘authoritarian in nature'
Don't miss out on the headlines from World. Followed categories will be added to My News. Donald Trump's disregard for the rule of law and attempts to hoard power for himself are 'truly alarming' and 'authoritarian in nature', an expert has warned. And they are escalating. Dr Kathryn Schumaker, a senior lecturer in American Studies for the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney, told the Trump administration had spent its first months trying to 'wrest away power' from Congress and the courts. 'The disregard the Trump administration has for the rule of law is truly alarming, and it is on a scale that has never been seen before in US politics,' Dr Schumaker told 'Other presidents have ignored the courts – Andrew Jackson's policy toward Native Americans is the clearest example. 'But the sheer number of executive orders issued by Trump that attempt to dictate law and policy, where the executive branch does not have that authority, is unprecedented.' Donald Trump's actions are 'unprecedented'. Picture: Saul Loeb/AFP 'A clear violation': Trump's most brazen move It's most blatant in the administration's immigration policies. Dr Schumaker pointed, in particular, to Mr Trump's invocation of the Alien Enemies Act, a law from 1798, to justify his deportation of migrants without due process. 'His administration is claiming sweeping authority under the executive's war powers by making specious claims that the US is being 'invaded' by immigrants and fentanyl,' said Dr Schumaker, adding that the Alien and Sedition Acts were 'highly controversial' even in the era during which they was passed. The Enemies Act has only been used three times before, during the War of 1812, World War I and World War II. 'Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, and James Madison, who wrote the US Constitution, were some of the most vocal critics of it as an unconstitutional overreach of federal power,' she said. 'Jefferson and Madison argued that these laws were so abhorrent to the letter and spirit of the US Constitution that states had the authority to nullify and refuse to enforce them.' In this case, the obvious problem is the Trump administration invoking a wartime law when the United States is not, in fact, at war. Mr Trump claims the deportees are members of foreign gangs, and therefore equiavelent to enemy nationals during a war. Picture: Brendan Smialowski/AFP 'Trump's executive orders have had devastating consequences in many areas, but the human cost of these policies is most apparent in immigration. Trumps administration is disregarding basic constitutional rights, including the right to due process of law,' said Dr Shumaker. 'Every person in the United States is supposed to be afforded the right to due process, regardless of immigration or citizenship status, per the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution. 'We have seen what happens when people are denied due process – Juan Abrego Garcia was wrongfully deported and is incarcerated in El Salvador, and over the weekend the news broke that, evidently, a two-year-old US citizen was deported to Honduras.' The two-year-old in question has an American father and Honduran mother. It seems the Trump administration deported the toddler with her mother and 11-year-old sister. A hearing has been scheduled for May to deal with a judge's 'strong suspicion the government just deported a US citizen with no meaningful process'. Mr Abrego Garcia was sent to El Salvador, where he is now being held in the country's notorious Cecot megaprison, otherwise known as the Terrorism Confinement Centre. He had been an illegal immigrant to the United States, but was later subject to a court order forbidding the government from deporting him, due to fears for his safety in El Salvador. The government has conceded, in court, that he was deported due to an 'administrative error', but the White House has indicated it has no intention of bringing him back – a stance that also defies court orders. He is married to a US citizen, with whom he shares a disabled child. 'Things like this are happening because the Trump administration is loading people on planes before a court can determine whether the deportation is legal or not,' said Dr Shumaker. 'This is lawless behaviour on the part of immigration officials. It is a clear violation of the principle of due process of law.' A cohort of migrants deported from the US arriving at El Salvador's Cecot prison. Picture: El Salvador's Presidency Press Office/AFP 'Authoritarian in nature' Immigration, of course, is not the only area of government conduct at issue here. For example, the Constitution explicitly gives Congress, not the executive branch, power over federal government spending. The DOGE team appointed by Mr Trump is asserting a right to cut that spending unilaterally, and to shut down congressionally approved programs. So that's a usurpation of the legislative branch's powers. Trump officials have kept asserting that Mr Trump, not the court system, should be the ultimate authority on which actions taken by his administration are constitutional. That is a usurpation of the judicial branch's powers. 'Trump's actions are authoritarian in nature,' Dr Shumaker said. 'His administration is attempting to consolidate power in the executive branch, wresting away power from the courts and especially from Congress. I do not think Congress is doing enough to assert its authority to check the Trump administration. 'Immigration is a clear example of this. Congress can and should legislate in this area – but the same is true for the massive funding cuts that the administration has made via DOGE and other avenues. 'Congress holds the power of the purse. These are funds that were allocated by Congress, and yet the Trump Administration is acting as if the executive branch holds that power. 'The judiciary and the legislative branch can and should rebuke this, but the Trump administration seems determined to ignore judicial rulings and statutory law. This is why critics have accused the administration of authoritarian impulses.' Congress is not trying to reassert its own power. It is controlled by Mr Trump's party. Picture: Mandel Ngan/AFP Anti-judge campaign 'escalates' There is an unmistakeable hostility, from both Mr Trump himself and the rest of his administration, towards judges who rule against him. This isn't new – the President has been calling certain judges corrupt since he entered politics. But the rhetoric is getting harsher, while the administration is threatening to act. In the past few days, for example, the FBI arrested Hannah Dugan, a judge in Wisconsin. It claims she obstructed the arrest of an illegal immigrant. This arrest was accompanied by what might be described as a concerted PR campaign. 'What is happening to our courts is beyond me,' said Attorney-General Pam Bondi, America's top law enforcement officer. 'They're deranged.' Dr Schumaker agreed that this arrest marked 'a significant escalation'. 'It seems that Trump is not satisfied to have appointed a huge number of federal judges and three Supreme Court justices – he is also attempting to intimidate the entire judiciary. It seems the administration hopes other judges, fearful for their own personal safety, will rule in ways that give Trump yet more power,' she said. Too many Americans 'not bothered' You may read this wondering why Australians should care about the Trump administration, across the Atlantic, pushing these longstanding boundaries. 'These issues already affect anyone on a visa attempting to enter the US or stay there,' said Dr Schumaker. 'We have already seen stories of visas and permanent residency being revoked, as has happened to university student protesters who are critical of Israel's actions in Gaza. But we have also seen stories of Australians being detained and deported without a clear reason. 'There's a bigger issue, too, of how the actions of the Trump administration might embolden other right-wing parties and undermine democracies in other parts of the world.' Mr Trump's actions risk 'emboldening' other right-wing parties around the world. Picture: Saul Loeb/AFP Meanwhile, the fact that so many Americans seem to not be particularly 'bothered' by this 'authoritarian streak' will make Mr Trump's power grabs harder to restrain. 'Even though the Trump administration's actions are shocking to many observers, it seems that a large portion of Americans are not bothered by what is happening,' she noted. 'His approval rating is falling, but the most recent AP/NORC poll shows that 46 per cent of Americans polled approve of his immigration policy. That's nearly half of everyone polled! It appears that many Americans are not bothered by Trump's authoritarian streak. 'I think this shows just how fragile US democracy is at the moment. If such a large proportion of people don't think the rule of law matters, then it's going to be very difficult for an effective response to come through traditional political mechanisms.' Originally published as Donald Trump's efforts to 'wrest power' from America's courts and Congress 'unprecedented' and 'authoritarian in nature'
