A Primer on the Aliens Enemies Act

President Trump has people talking about the Alien Enemies Act.  NPR’s Throughline looks at the Act in detail:

“In March 2025, President Trump issued an executive order invoking a centuries-old law: the Alien Enemies Act. The Act allows a president to detain or deport citizens of foreign adversaries to the United States, but only in the case of a `declared war’ or `invasion.’ Now, the Trump administration and the courts are locked in a battle over whether the president’s use of the Act, under which people have already been deported, is legal.”

Professor Daniel Tichenor (University of Oregon) discusses the history of the use of the Alien Enemies Act in the War of 1812, World War I,  and World War II, all declared wars.  The Act allows actions directed at noncitizens, not U.S. citizens.  It therefore could not justify the internment of U.S. citizens of Japanese ancestry during World War II.  The first time that the Alien Enemies Act was used not during a declared war was by President Trump in 2025.

KJ