Appeals Court Considers Trumps Ability to Deport Under Alien Enemies Act

Detainees argue the president is misusing his war powers and that their removal should be blocked.A man walks in front of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans, La., in an undated file photograph. Jonathan Bachman/AP Photo1/22/2026|Updated: 1/22/2026A federal appeals court on Jan. 22 grappled with whether President Donald Trump may use the Alien Enemies Act to try to remove alleged members of a foreign terrorist group.The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans held an hour-long oral argument in the extensively litigated case known as W.M.M. v. Trump.Matthew Vadum is an award-winning investigative journalist.Author’s Selected Articles