By New York Post (U.S.) | Created at 2025-03-13 19:07:32 | Updated at 2025-03-14 10:34:43
15 hours ago
WASHINGTON — President Trump’s administration is getting ready to invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 in the coming days, two sources close to the White House told The Post, paving the way for use of a war-time authority to fast-track mass deportations of illegal migrants.
The president had campaigned on invoking the centuries-old law to remove illegal migrants from “enemy nations” if they are deemed a threat to the US — a move that would bypass any lengthy immigration court proceedings.
It’s expected to officially take place “by the end of this week,” one source relayed, confirming a report first published by CNN, and will target members of the violent Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua whose members are believed to have killed Laken Riley and Jocelyn Nungaray in cold blood.
The invocation of the act could run into legal hurdles, however, as lawyers argue the act can only be invoked during war time and violates due process.
The Trump administration has already started deporting illegal migrants back to their country of origin and have arrested 32,000 migrants in 50 days, maxing out ICE beds across the country.
The last time the act was invoked was by former President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1941 after the Japanese attacks on Pearl Harbor.
Trump, speaking in Aurora, Colo. in October, one of the cities impacted by the infiltration of TdA, called the gang members “stone cold killers.”
“I will invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798,” Trump said at his rally, “to target and dismantle every criminal network operating on American soil.”
The president has also said he wants to impose a 10-year prison sentence for those who re-enter the US after being deported, and the death penalty for illegal migrants who kill US citizens.
The FBI has also taken measures to crack down on gang members terrorizing communities across the country.
The bureau is putting resources into going after those affiliated with transferring money back to Nicolas Maduro’s Venezuelan regime, including members of TdA.
The bureau rounded up 214 illegal migrants and gang members in Virginia in the past two weeks through their new inter-agency taskforce, The Post reported.
