- Mar 11, 2015
- 99,641
- 102,330
- 3,645
Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport those people to El Salvador. The problem with this is that the Act didn't cover this situation.
Since then, the act has been used just three times: during the War of 1812, World War I and World War II.
It was part of the World War II legal rationale for mass internments in the U.S. of people of German, Italian and especially Japanese ancestry. An estimated 120,000 people with Japanese heritage, including those with U.S. citizenship, were incarcerated.
We are not at war with Venezuela. Therefore Trump had no right to do this.
The Alien Enemies Act: What to know about a 1798 law that Trump has invoked for deportations
What is the Alien Enemies Act?
In 1798, with the U.S. preparing for what it believed would be a war with France, Congress passed a series of laws that increased the federal government's reach. The Alien Enemies Act was created to give the president wide powers to imprison and deport noncitizens in time of war.Since then, the act has been used just three times: during the War of 1812, World War I and World War II.
It was part of the World War II legal rationale for mass internments in the U.S. of people of German, Italian and especially Japanese ancestry. An estimated 120,000 people with Japanese heritage, including those with U.S. citizenship, were incarcerated.
We are not at war with Venezuela. Therefore Trump had no right to do this.