Ever since Donald Trump returned to the White House for his second term, his immigration policies have faced massive scrutiny. From mass deportations to a hardline stance against asylum seekers, the administration has pursued some of the most aggressive immigration measures.
Now, in another event, Trump has invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. It is a controversial wartime law that was last used during World War II, to fast-track the removal of immigrants.
This move, according to critics is “deeply shameful” and might be of one of the darkest chapters in American history.
In a proclamation issued on Saturday, Trump claimed that the mass deportation initiative is necessary to protect national security from an “invasion” by Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan criminal gang he has designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.
“Tren de Aragua (TdA) is a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization with thousands of members, many of whom have unlawfully infiltrated the United States and are conducting irregular warfare and undertaking hostile actions against the United States,” Trump stated in his executive order.
The President accused the Venezuelan government which is led by Nicolás Maduro, of facilitating mass illegal migration to destabilize US democracy. This signifies his long-standing claims that foreign adversaries are deliberately flooding the US with criminals, drugs, and potential threats; a key narrative in both his 2024 campaign and his first term in office.
Trump wants to use a law from 1798, The Alien Enemies act which was previously used to jail Japanese Americans into internment camps during World War II. Later the US was found to have used the law illegally and were forced to pay the Japanese reparations. pic.twitter.com/VE2TwxpNb6
— Movie Monster #ADOS (@Pauline98476699) March 15, 2025
The Alien Enemies Act of 1798 is one of the oldest and most controversial wartime laws in US history. It was originally intended for detaining enemy nationals during wartime and last used during World War II, when over 120,000 Japanese Americans, along with thousands of German and Italian immigrants, were forcibly detained in prison camps without trial.
The law does not distinguish between legal and undocumented immigrants. It means, that even individuals with legal residency or those seeking asylum could be targeted. Legal experts warn that Trump’s move could set a dangerous precedent which might allow mass detentions without due process.
Human rights groups and legal experts have slammed the decision. According to them, it is a blatant abuse of executive power.
Trump’s attempt to resurrect this law has already hit legal roadblocks.
Hours after the executive order was signed, Chief Judge James Boasberg in Washington issued a temporary restraining order that blocked the deportation of five Venezuelan nationals who were set to be removed under the new policy.
Judge Boasberg’s ruling could be the beginning of a larger legal battle, as multiple civil rights groups, including Amnesty International and the ACLU, have vowed to challenge the order in court.
🔥BREAKING: Trump has just invoked The Alien Enemies Act of 1798 which has only been invoked during wartime and last time being the War 1812, WW I & WW II. https://t.co/f6IGFajlpT
— ℝ𝔸𝕐 (@rjohdomingo) March 15, 2025
“This is yet another step in Trump’s racist and cruel attack on immigrants,” said Amy Fischer, director of Amnesty International’s refugee and migrant rights program in the U.S. “It is deeply shameful, and it will only fuel fear and panic among already vulnerable communities.”
Even before this latest move, Trump’s immigration policies had raised eyebrows both domestically and internationally. He vowed to conduct the largest mass deportation operation as he talked about targeting “millions and millions” of undocumented immigrants. ICE raids have increased, and his administration has been accused of violating international asylum laws.
In addition to reviving wartime-era laws, Trump has also proposed sending immigrants to Guantánamo Bay, the controversial US detention facility that has been used to hold suspected terrorists without trial for decades.
“Some of them are so bad we don’t even trust the countries to hold them because we don’t want them coming back, so we’re going to send them out to Guantánamo,” Trump said. That came of as a signal that he plans to turn the facility into a holding center for detainees under his new immigration policies.
Legal experts have raised concerns that using Guantánamo for immigration detentions would violate both US and international laws. However, it seems that Trump’s administration is pushing forward with plans to expand the use of military detention facilities for deportees.
The administration insists that the invocation of the Alien Enemies Act is necessary to protect the country but legal challenges could delay or even completely block its implementation. As federal courts are already pushing back against mass deportations, it seems the battle over Trump’s immigration policies is only just beginning.
At the same time, protests have erupted across major US cities; many immigration advocates are calling the order “one of the most extreme anti-immigration policies in US history.”
