Deportations and the Law

We the People

National Constitution Center

History, News Commentary, News

4.6 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 21 March 2025

⏱️ 68 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Trump has invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a wartime authority, to summarily deport suspected members of a Venezuelan gang. He also invoked a Cold War-era statute to deport a student activist at Columbia University. In this episode, Adam Cox of New York University and Ilya Somin of George Mason University join to discuss the scope of the president’s deportation power and to evaluate whether the administration violated the due process or speech rights of the deportees. Resources Adam Cox and Cristina Rodríguez, The President and Immigration Law (2020) Ilya Somin, Free to Move: Foot Voting, Migration, and Political Freedom (2021) Adam Cox and Ahilan Arulanantham, “Explainer on First Amendment and Due Process Issues in Deportation of Pro-Palestinian Student Activist(s),” Just Security (March 12, 2025) Ilya Somin, “The Case Against Deporting Immigrants for ‘Pro-Terrorist’ Speech,” Volokh Conspiracy (March 10, 2025) Ilya Somin, “What Just Happened: The “Invasion” Executive Order and Its Dangerous Implications” Just Security (January 28, 2025) Adam Cox, “The Invention of Immigration Exceptionalism,” Yale Law Review (November 2024) Bridges v. Wixon (1945) Harisiades v. Shaughnessy (1952) Stay Connected and Learn More Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected] Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr. Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate. Follow, rate, and review wherever you listen. Join us for an upcoming live program or watch recordings on YouTube. Support our important work. Donate

Transcript

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0:00.0	Last week, President Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a wartime authority,
0:06.6	to summarily deport suspected members of a Venezuelan gang.
0:11.1	The administration also attempted to deport a student activist at Columbia University
0:15.2	on the basis of his alleged support for terrorism.
0:22.1	Hello, friends. I'm Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center,
0:27.1	and welcome to We the People, a weekly show of constitutional debate.
0:31.0	The National Constitution Center is a nonpartisan nonprofit, chartered by Congress, to increase
0:35.7	awareness and understanding of a constitution among the
0:38.8	American people. This week, I'm pleased to welcome two thoughtful scholars on immigration law
0:44.3	to explore whether or not these deportations are lawful. Adam Cox is the Robert A. Kindler
0:51.4	professor of law at New York University School of Law,
0:54.5	where he teaches and writes about immigration law, constitutional law, and democracy.
0:59.3	Adam's book include The President and Immigration Law, which he published in 2020 with co-author
1:05.9	Christina Rodriguez. Adam, it is wonderful to welcome you to We the People.
1:10.5	Thank you so much for having me.
1:13.0	And Ilya Soman is Professor of Law at George Mason University and the B-Kenneth-Simon chair in
1:18.8	Constitutional Studies at the Cato Institute. His research focuses on constitutional law,
1:23.9	federalism, and migration rights. He's the author of Free to Move,
1:28.1	foot-voting migration and political freedom. Ilya writes for the Vala Conspiracy Blog at Reason.
1:34.3	Ilya, it's wonderful to welcome you to We the People. Thank you so much for having me.
1:39.0	Let's begin with the Alien Enemies Act case. The text of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 reads,
1:46.9	whenever there is a declared war between the United States and any foreign nation or government,
	...

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