President Donald Trump recently invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to target the designated foreign terrorist organization Tren de Aragua (TdA), following a ruling by a federal judge in Washington, D.C. that the law could not be used to deport five Venezuelans. This wartime law allows for the deportation of natives and citizens of an enemy nation without necessitating a hearing, and has been used three times in history. All Venezuelan citizens over the age of 14 who are members of TdA may be apprehended, restrained, secured, and removed as “alien enemies” if they are within the U.S. and are not naturalized or lawful permanent residents.
Prior to the signing of the act, a lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, Democracy Forward, and the ACLU of the District of Columbia, arguing that the proclamation could potentially result in the deportation of any Venezuelan in the country, regardless of their affiliation with TdA. Chief U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg granted a temporary restraining order preventing the deportation of the five Venezuelans in immigration custody for two weeks. The Trump administration appealed this order, claiming it is improper to delay a presidential act before it is announced. A second hearing is scheduled to determine if the order should be extended to protect all individuals at risk of removal under the act.
Skye Perryman, president and CEO of Democracy Forward, criticized the president’s use of wartime authority in this immigration enforcement action, emphasizing that the U.S. is not currently at war or under invasion. Perryman described this invocation as an authoritarian step and accused the administration of enacting a lawless and harmful immigration agenda. An in-person hearing on the lawsuit’s merits is set to take place in D.C. on Monday, as the administration moves forward with fulfilling a campaign promise made by Trump during an October rally to combat TdA members in the U.S.
TdA, designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the Department of State, has thousands of members who have allegedly infiltrated the U.S. and engaged in irregular warfare and hostile actions against the country, according to the White House. Authorities in Colorado confirmed TdA’s presence in the state and established a special task force to address the gang’s activities, resulting in multiple arrests linked to criminal activities such as shootings, murders, kidnappings, and drug trafficking. The gang is said to operate in collaboration with the Cártel de los Soles, a narco-terrorism enterprise associated with the Nicolás Maduro regime in Venezuela.
TdA’s growth escalated during Tareck El Aissami’s tenure as governor of Aragua between 2012 and 2017, leading to El Aissami’s appointment as vice president of Venezuela in 2017. El Aissami was subsequently designated a specially designated narcotics trafficker under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act by the Treasury Department, and has been regarded as a U.S. fugitive. In 2020, Maduro and other regime members were charged with narcoterrorism and other crimes in an alleged plot against the United States, further complicating the geopolitical landscape.
