President-elect Donald Trump has signaled that he is “ready” to declare a national emergency and mobilize military assets to make good on his 2024 election promise of sweeping deportations. He made the announcement in a post on his Truth Social platform on Monday, responding to comments from Tom Fitton, president of the conservative group Judicial Watch.
Fitton had stated on November 8 that the incoming Trump administration was “prepared to declare a national emergency and will use military assets” in its efforts for mass deportation. Trump simply affirmed: “True!!!
The announcement represents the clearest indication yet of Trump’s intentions to carry out what he has described as the “biggest deportation operation” in U.S. history. However, the plan has met significant criticism from human rights advocates and raised concerns regarding its viability and the extent to which presidential power can go in removing millions of undocumented immigrants.
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, recalled that U.S. presidents are allowed to declare a national emergency under certain circumstances, adding that deploying military force for deportations is not one of them.
Details of how Trump intends to carry out these mass deportations have not been forthcoming. Estimates put the number of undocumented residents now living in the U.S. between 11 million and 13 million, and immigration and human rights groups have said such a policy would have catastrophic humanitarian consequences. To do so would require the major and expensive expansion of enforcement and detention capacity.
An American Immigration Council estimate put the cost of increasing deportations to one million people per year—about four times more than under current rates—at almost $968 billion over ten years.
Stephen Miller, Trump’s new deputy chief of staff for policy and a longtime advocate for harsh immigration laws and regulations, has said that he would seek to “deputize” the U.S. National Guard to conduct widespread raids and round-ups. Tom Homan, former chief at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE, and newly appointed “border czar,” has emphasized an approach centered on targeted enforcement, especially at workplaces and against national security threats. Homan added that the families could be removed together to avoid the risk of family separations.
On the campaign trail, Trump has often spoken about using the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which allows for deporting citizens of an “enemy nation” without regular legal processes. But as lawyers argue, this even does not allow for mass deportations.
Reichlin-Melnick remembered that in 2019, Trump declared a national emergency to divert military funds for a border wall. He added that there might be a similar plan for deportation activities, but warned that the statements from Trump should not be taken at face value. “My lesson from the first time around is that we absolutely cannot take things that the Trumpworld people say as gospel,” he said, citing the vagueness of their pledges and the tendency to make broad pronouncements designed to outrage their opponents.
