US appeals court upholds block on Trump deportation of some Venezuelans
USA-TRUMP-MIGRATION:US appeals court upholds block on Trump deportation of some Venezuelans
By Ted Hesson and Luc Cohen
WASHINGTON - A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday upheld a lower court's temporary block on the Trump administration's deportation of some Venezuelan immigrants under a little-used 18th century law.
The decision by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit marks a defeat for Republican President Donald Trump, who argued U.S. District Judge James Boasberg's two-week ban on deportations under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act encroached on the executive's authority to make national security decisions.
A three-judge panel voted 2-1 to uphold Boasberg's block on deportations, with U.S. Circuit Judge Justin Walker - who was appointed by Trump during his first term - dissenting.
Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act on March 15 to swiftly deport alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, attempting to speed up removals with a law best known for its use to intern Japanese, Italian and German immigrants during World War Two.
An ensuing legal battle over the move has highlighted Trump's attempts to strong-arm the federal judiciary, a coequal branch of government that serves as a check on executive power.
Boasberg temporarily blocked the Alien Enemies Act deportations later that day following a legal challenge by the American Civil Liberties Union. But the Trump administration allowed two planes already in the air to continue to El Salvador where the U.S. handed 238 Venezuelan men over to Salvadoran authorities to be placed in the country's "Terrorism Confinement Center."
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Wednesday arrived in El Salvador to visit a mega-prison holding the Venezuelans deported by the U.S.
Noem, an outspoken proponent of Trump's immigration crackdown, also plans to meet with El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
