In a rambling post on his social platform, President Donald Trump lashed out at the Supreme Court’s recent decision rejecting his attempt to invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 for mass deportations.
The ruling, which effectively shuts down his bid to bypass standard legal procedures for deporting certain noncitizens, triggered a characteristic Trumpian response, branding the decision as a dire threat to American safety.
” … The worst murderers, drug dealers, gang members”
“The Supreme Court has just ruled that the worst murderers, drug dealers, gang members, and even those who are mentally insane, who came into our Country illegally, are not allowed to be forced out without going through a long, protracted, and expensive Legal Process,” Trump wrote, expressing his frustration over what he sees as a bureaucratic quagmire. He claimed that this process, stretching over years, would allow dangerous criminals to commit additional crimes before facing any form of legal reckoning.
He continued, “The result of this decision will let more CRIMINALS pour into our Country, doing great harm to our cherished American public. It will also encourage other criminals to illegally enter our Country, wreaking havoc and bedlam wherever they go.”
Trump’s tirade didn’t stop there. He also targeted former President Joe Biden, accusing him of allowing “millions of Criminal Aliens” to enter the country without any legal checks while requiring a cumbersome and extended process to deport them. He reserved his gratitude for the court’s conservative stalwarts, Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, thanking them for “attempting to protect our Country.”
Trump capped off his digital diatribe with a familiar flourish: “This is a bad and dangerous day for America!”
The Alien Enemies Act: French spies and saboteurs
— Bryan Dawson
JUST IN:
In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court dealt President Donald Trump a big blow by blocking mass deportations of accused gang members under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. It agreed to consider US 5th Circuit of Appeals ruling. Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented. pic.twitter.com/Lv1kw8d4gg(@BryanDawsonUSA) May 16, 2025
Trump’s attempted use of the Alien Enemies Act is a deeply controversial interpretation of one of America’s oldest national security laws. Passed in 1798 amid fears of French spies and saboteurs, the Act grants the president sweeping powers to detain and deport noncitizens from hostile nations during times of declared war or invasion. However, its use has always been tightly constrained and historically rare, reserved for periods of actual armed conflict.
The Supreme Court’s ruling effectively reminded Trump that the presidency, while powerful, is not a monarchy. The court’s decision underscored that even in times of heightened security concerns, the executive branch cannot unilaterally disregard the due process rights enshrined in the Constitution. In essence, the ruling slammed the door on Trump’s effort to stretch the Alien Enemies Act to cover undocumented migrants en masse, rather than the specific enemy aliens for which it was intended.
While Trump’s critics might roll their eyes at his predictable outcry, the ruling has significant implications for U.S. immigration policy. It reaffirms that the executive cannot sidestep the due process protections guaranteed by the Constitution, even under the guise of national security. This is a critical distinction, particularly as the debate over immigration continues to roil American politics.
As Trump put it in his own words, the ruling marks a ‘bad and dangerous day for America.’ But for the Supreme Court, it’s a powerful reaffirmation of the limits of presidential power, a reminder that not even the most bombastic commander-in-chief can bypass the Constitution’s checks and balances. Trump might not be a king, but as this ruling makes clear, he’s not above the law either.
