Judge James Boasberg, an Obama appointee, once again grilled DOJ lawyers about the Trump Administration’s move to deport dangerous Venezuelan aliens under the Alien Enemies Act.
A showdown between Boasberg and the Trump DOJ played out in court this week after the judge issued an order forcing planes en route to Central and South America carrying dangerous Venezuelan aliens to turn around and come back to the US.
On Sunday, the Trump DOJ provided an update to Boasberg’s order and said the criminal aliens were outside of US territory when the order came down.
The DOJ argued that the Judge has zero jurisdiction over international airspace.
The Justice Department also refused to give Judge James Boasberg sensitive information in a case against Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act.
This angered the judge and he insisted that disclosing sensitive information won’t put state secrets in danger because Secretary of State Marco Rubio has publicly spoken about the deportation flights.
“Defendants shall have until March 20, 2025, at 12:00 p.m. to provide the information discussed in the Minute Order of March 18, 2025, or to invoke the state-secrets doctrine and explain the basis for such invocation,” the judge wrote on Wednesday.
The Thursday noon deadline passed and Judge Boasberg once again lashed out at the DOJ’s response as “woefully insufficient.”
Boasberg then made new insane demands and ordered the Trump Administration to disclose more information about the deportation flights:
1. By [Friday] March 21, 2025, at 10:00 a.m., Defendants shall submit a sworn declaration by a person with direct involvement in the Cabinet-level discussions regarding invocation of the state-secrets privilege;
On Friday, Judge Boasberg said Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to deport criminal aliens is “incredibly troublesome and problematic.”
Although Boasberg did not issue a ruling on Friday, he threatened the Trump Admin with consequences if they violate his order in the future.
Excerpt from ABC News:
President Donald Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport more than 200 alleged Venezuelan gang members is an “incredibly troublesome and problematic” application of the centuries-old wartime law, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said during a court hearing Friday, in his strongest rebuke to date of the Trump administration’s deportation actions.
“I agree the policy ramifications of this are incredibly troublesome and problematic and concerning, and I agree it’s an unprecedented and expanded use of an act that has been used … in the War of 1812, World War I and World War II, when there was no question there was a declaration of war and who the enemy was,” Boasberg said at Friday’s hearing.
The judge noted that the Trump administration’s arguments about the extent of the president’s powers are “awfully frightening” and a “long way from” the intent of the law.
He also vowed to hold the Trump administration accountable, if necessary, if they violated his court order last weekend blocking the use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport the Venezuelan migrants.
“The government’s not being terribly cooperative at this point, but I will get to the bottom of whether they violated my word and who ordered this and what’s the consequence,” he said.
When Boasberg asked if the DOJ could vow that the Trump administration would hold individual hearings before they deport anyone under the AEA to confirm they are members of Tren de Aragua, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Drew Ensign declined to make that commitment.
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