The court fight focuses on the Trump administration's use of a 1798 law to deport people it claims are part of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.

In 1798, with the U.S. preparing for what it believed would be a war with France, Congress passed a series of laws that increased the federal government’s reach. The Alien Enemies Act was created to give the president wide powers to imprison and deport noncitizens in time of war.

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Debates over President Donald Trump’s hardline migration policies are focused on the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, to some a ruthless transnational criminal organization and to others the pretext for an overhyped anti-migrant narrative.

Tren de Aragua, a gang born out of a Venezuelan prison, is a loose network that doesn’t operate like groups typically considered terrorist organizations.

Tren de Aragua, commonly known as TdA, is the Venezuelan gang targeted by President Trump in recent mass deportations. On Saturday, Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, the first time it’s