Donald Trump arrives in Florida on Air Force One on Friday evening. (AP Photo: Manuel Balce Ceneta)
In short:
US President Donald Trump on Saturday invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a sweeping war authority that would have empowered him to speed up mass deportations, on the basis the US was being "invaded" by a Venezuelan gang.
A federal judge barred deportations under the act just hours later, saying he needed to issue his order immediately because the government was already flying migrants it claimed were deportable to El Salvador and Honduras.
What's next?
The judge's injunction prevents deportations for those in custody for up to 14 days, with the next hearing in the case scheduled for this coming Friday.
US President Donald Trump on Saturday announced he had invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 — a sweeping war authority that would have empowered him to speed up mass deportations on the basis the United States was being "invaded" by a Venezuelan gang.
However, a federal judge barred the administration from carrying out deportations under the act just hours later.
Justice James E Boasberg, chief judge for the US District Court for the District of Columbia, said he needed to issue his injunction immediately because the government was already flying migrants it claimed were newly deportable under Mr Trump's proclamation to El Salvador and Honduras to be incarcerated there.
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"I do not believe I can wait any longer and am required to act," Justice Boasberg said during the brief afternoon hearing, in a lawsuit brought by civil rights groups the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Democracy Forward.
"A brief delay in [the migrants'] removal does not cause the government any harm."
Mr Trump's attempt to invoke the centuries-old act hours earlier was based on the claim that Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua was invading the US, contending it was a hostile force acting at the behest of Venezuela's government.
"Over the years, Venezuelan national and local authorities have ceded ever-greater control over their territories to transnational criminal organizations, including TdA," Mr Trump's proclamation read.
"The result is a hybrid criminal state that is perpetrating an invasion of and predatory incursion into the United States, and which poses a substantial danger to the United States."
The act was last used for the mass internment of Japanese-American civilians during World War II, and has only been used two other times in American history — during World War I and the War of 1812.
Henry Carmona (right) fled Venezuela for Florida after receiving death threats for refusing to participate in pro-government demonstrations. (AP Photo: Rebecca Blackwell)
Tren de Aragua originated in a Venezuelan prison in the 2010s, its growth occurring alongside an economic crisis that has sparked the exodus of millions of Venezuelans seeking better living conditions.
During his presidential campaign, Mr Trump and his allies turned the gang into the face of the alleged threat posed by immigrants living in the US illegally, and the White House formally designated it a foreign terrorist organisation last month.
Authorities in several countries have reported arrests of Tren de Aragua members, even as Venezuela's government claims to have eliminated the criminal group.
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Immigration lawyers noticed the federal government suddenly moving to deport Venezuelans it would not otherwise have the legal right to expel from the country, and scrambled to file lawsuits to block what they believed was a pending proclamation.
However, the White House later said Mr Trump had actually signed the order invoking the act on Friday night.
Justice Boasberg issued an initial order at 9:20am Saturday blocking the government from deporting five detained Venezuelans named as plaintiffs in the ACLU suit who believed they were about to be deported.
The Trump administration appealed that order, contending that halting a presidential act before it has been announced would cripple the executive branch.
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If the order were allowed to stand, "district courts would have license to enjoin virtually any urgent national-security action just upon receipt of a complaint," the Department of Justice wrote in its appeal.
Justice Boasberg then scheduled the afternoon hearing on whether to expand his order to all people who could be targeted under Mr Trump's declaration.
Deputy Assistant Attorney-General Drew Ensign contended that the president had broad latitude to identify threats to the country and act under the 1798 law.
He noted the US Supreme Court allowed president Harry Truman to continue to hold a German citizen in 1948, three years after World War II ended, under the measure.
"This would cut very deeply into the prerogatives of the president," Mr Ensign said of an injunction.
But Lee Gelernt of the ACLU noted the law had only been invoked three times before, and contended that Mr Trump didn't have the authority to use it against a criminal gang rather than a recognised state.
Justice Boasberg said that precedent on the question seemed tricky but that the ACLU had a reasonable chance of success on those arguments, and so the order was merited.
He halted deportations for those in custody for up to 14 days, and scheduled a Friday hearing in the case.
AP