SiriusXM’s Megyn Kelly clashed with Democrat Florida State Attorney Dave Aronberg on her show Friday over whether a D.C. federal judge can “decide political questions” regarding President Donald Trump.
Trump’s Department of Justice (DOJ) on March 28 asked the U.S. Supreme Court to block U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg’s temporary halt on deportations under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. While discussing the case on “The Megyn Kelly Show,” Aronberg defended Boasberg’s decision, prompting Kelly to push back and question the judge’s authority.
“OK, but Dave, how is it that the federal district courts are allowed, in the argument of the ACLU, to decide whether there’s been an incursion, a predatory incursion, by a foreign government?” Kelly asked. “How are they better positioned to determine that than the commander-in-chief and the sitting president of the United States?”
“Well, they’re entitled to interpret the Alien Enemies Act, and here the judge is saying there’s not been a declaration of war, and so this act does not apply, does not give the executive branch the authority to make these decisions — ” Aronberg said before Kelly jumped in.
On March 15, Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 against the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, allowing officials to make immediate arrests and removals of gang members. The same day the order was invoked, however, Boasberg filed to halt deportations as the Trump administration announced the removal of more than 200 gang members to El Salvador.
“You’re not answering,” Kelly pushed back. “No, no, no, so let me stop you there, because there’s three different ways that you can get the Alien Enemies Act to apply. Act of war, invasion or predatory incursion. Trump seems to be citing the latter two.”
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“They don’t seem to be arguing that we’re necessarily at war with Venezuela, but, for sure, he’s saying, if you look at his declaration, it says invasion and predatory incursion,” Kelly said. “So there’s no question that you can have those other things without Congress.”
Aronberg went on to say that the “executive branch has the ability to interpret that statute as it wants” in the same way the judiciary could say the executive branch has “gone too far.”
“They’re not allowed to decide political questions, Dave,” Kelly jumped in. “How is it not a political question whether we’ve suffered a predatory invasion from Venezuela?” Kelly asked.
Aronberg said the Supreme Court would make that decision. He began to say it was “telling” that the court hadn’t jumped in on the case before Kelly cut him off.
“They never questioned our declaration of war after 9-11. They didn’t question our declaration of war with respect to Iraq or Afghanistan,” Kelly said. “The courts have typically been reluctant to go anywhere near that kind of political declaration because they understand when you’re talking about political questions, the president is at the apex of his powers and the courts, to say they’re at their nadir, they have nothing. They have none.”
The case was brought to the Supreme Court after the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Boasberg’s temporary halt on March 26. While waiting to see if SCOTUS will take the case, Boasberg grilled DOJ lawyers Thursday on whether they had defied his original court order blocking deportations, according to Fox News.
(Featured Image Media Credit: Screenshot/YouTube/”The Megyn Kelly Show”)
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