Dave Smith and Alex Nowrasteh Debate Immigration
Is it consistently libertarian to support government restrictions on immigration?
Immigration
Report: 50 Venezuelans Sent to Salvadoran Prison Entered the U.S. Legally, Contrary to White House Claims
"It's not just one or two administrative errors," says the Cato Institute's David Bier.
ICE Helps Round Up Sex Workers in Florida
In Operation Fool Around and Find Out, 244 "human trafficking" arrests, but no human trafficking.
Most Migrants Deported to Imprisonment in El Salvador Under the Alien Enemies Act Had no Criminal Record and Many had Entered the US Legally
A new Cato Institute study by David Bier presents the most extensive available evidence on these points.
What Kristi Noem Gets Wrong About Habeas Corpus
The legal principle safeguards civil liberties, protecting even unpopular people from the government.
Serious Immigration Law Enforcement Means Serious Destruction to American Liberty
Stephen Miller's trial balloon about abrogating habeas corpus in immigration cases shows how any libertarian with pragmatic intelligence should reject so-called "libertarian" arguments for strict immigration laws.
Trump Says Birthright Citizenship Is Only 'About the Babies of Slaves.' Historical Evidence Says Otherwise.
The 1866 debate over birthright citizenship included a debate over immigration.
Fourth Circuit Rules Against Trump Administration in Alien Enemies Act Case
In a 2-1 ruling, the Court ruled Trump's invocation of the Alien Enemies Act cannot supersede a settlement barring deportation of a group of migrants. One judge also held the AEA was invoked illegally.
Supreme Court Allows DHS to Suspend Temporary Protected Status for Venezuelans
The latest SCOTUS order shows the justices are taking a more nuanced approach to district court injunctions of Trump Administration policies than its critics, left or right.
Lee Kovarsky, D. Theodore Rave, and Steve Vladeck on Class Actions and the Alien Enemies Act Litigation
Kovarsky and Rave defend the use of class actions in AEA habeas cases. Vladeck highlights the significance of the Supreme Court's grant of an injunction to a "putative class" of AEA detainees.
Bigotry, Hypocrisy, and Trump's Admission of Afrikaners as Refugees
The Administration isn't wrong to admit white South African migrants. But it is wrong to exclude all other refugees, including many fleeing far worse discrimination and oppression.
Our Supreme Court Amicus Brief Opposing Termination of CHNV Immigration Parole, Which Would Subject Some 500,000 Legal Immigrants to the Risk of Deportation to Oppressive Regimes
The brief is on behalf of the Cato Institute and myself.
Supreme Court Issues Ruling Temporarily Blocking Alien Enemies Act Deportations
The ruling held that migrants detained under AEA had not been given adequate notice of their potential deportation. It also reflects the Court's growing distrust of the Trump Administration.
Supreme Court Enjoins Summary Removal of Alleged Tren de Aragua Members under Alien Enemies Act
A majority of the justices seem unconvinced the Administration was prepared to provide the process that was due. Justices Alito and Thomas dissent.
A Simple Defense of Nationwide Injunctions
Nationwide illegality by the federal government requires a nationwide remedy.
The Supreme Court May Rule for Trump on Nationwide Injunctions but Probably Not on Birthright Citizenship
The president's executive order on birthright citizenship had its first test before the Supreme Court.
My New Lawfare Article "Trump's 'Emergencies' Are Pretexts for Undermining the Constitution"
The article explains why these claims to emergency powers are illegal and dangerous, and how to stop them.
Trump (Partially) Wins an Alien Enemies Act Case
In a badly flawed decision, a federal district court ruled that Trump can invoke the AEA because the Tren de Aragua drug gang's activities amount to a "predatory incursion."
Trump's Case Against Birthright Citizenship Is a Constitutional Loser
The text and history of the Fourteenth Amendment run counter to Trump’s executive order.
Reason Nominated for 17 Southern California Journalism Awards
Nominees include stories on inflation breaking brains, America's first drug war, Afghans the U.S. left behind, Javier Milei, and much more.
Since Immigration Is an 'Invasion,' a Top Trump Adviser Says, the President Might Suspend Habeas Corpus
Stephen Miller's understanding of the Constitution is dubious for several reasons.
Amy Coney Barrett's "Suspension and Delegation" Revisited
One of the justices wrote extensively about when and whether the writ of habeas corpus may be suspended.
Trump's Tariffs and Immigration Policies Destroy Thousands of Acres of Tomato Crops in Florida
“Between the cost of labor and the inputs that goes in, it’s more cost-effective for farmers” to plow over ripe tomatoes, said one expert.
Defenders of Trump's Birthright Citizenship Order Offer an Implausible Take on a 127-Year-Old Precedent
Briefs urging the Supreme Court to stay injunctions against the order challenge "the conventional wisdom" about the meaning of an 1898 decision interpreting the 14th Amendment.
Newark Mayor Arrested for ICE 'Trespassing'
Plus: Air traffic controller issues, tariff deal between U.S. and China, "murder insurance," and more...
Court Orders Release of Tufts Foreign Student Detained For Her Speech
The ruling is a victory for the proposition that the First Amendment applies to immigration and visa restrictions.
White House May Try to Suspend the Writ of Habeas Corpus in Order to Facilitate Deportation of Migrants
I have long warned of this dangerous implication of the argument that illegal migration qualifies as "invasion."
Do These Libertarians Regret Voting for Donald Trump?
Three libertarians—Dave Smith, J.D. Tuccille, and Liz Wolfe—revisit their reluctant votes for Trump, weighing the promises, chaos, and consequences of his second term so far.
Judge Orders Tufts Grad Student Rumeysa Ozturk Be Released on Bail From Immigration Detention
Ozturk's continued detention "potentially chills the speech of the millions and millions of people in this country who are not citizens," said U.S. District Judge William K. Sessions III.
Pope Leo XIV and Immigration
The first American pope has a history of advocating for migrants' rights.
Trump's New Budget Is Another Blueprint for Big Spending
We don't need more of the same. We need evidence of a serious turnaround.
Colorado Federal District Court Issues Additional Alien Enemies Act Ruling Against Trump
The court instituted a preliminary injunction against the Administration's use of the Act to deport Venezuelans.
India vs. Pakistan (and China)
Plus: Conclave time, land acknowledgements, deporting to Libya, and more...
Trump Administration Makes Damaging Admissions on Alien Enemies Act and Deportations
Trump admits he could return migrant illegally deported to El Salvador. And an intelligence community report concludes the Tren de Aragua drug gang isn't controlled by the Venezuelan government.
An Intelligence Memo Casts Further Doubt on Trump's Nonsensical Definition of 'Alien Enemies'
A declassified assessment contradicts the president's assertion that Tren de Aragua is "closely aligned with" the Venezuelan government and acts at its "direction."
Bernick v. Wurman on Birthright Citizenship and the 14th Amendment
An important (and importantly civil) debate on birthright citizenship.
Yet Another Federal Court Rules Against Trump in an Alien Enemies Act Case
The Southern District of New York rules Trump invoked the Act illegally, because there is no "invasion" or "predatory incursion."
Intelligence Agencies Undermining Trump's Claims
Plus: Deporting the worst of the worst, Bessent tries to promote the Trump economic agenda, and more...
'Federal Courts Have No Role To Play,' Trump Tells SCOTUS in Latest Deportation Case Filing
The Trump administration is desperate to avoid judicial review.
The Trump Administration Is Using Tattoos, Logos, and Clothes To Identify Supposed Gang Members
ICE deported Andry Hernandez Romero because his "mom" and "dad" tattoos were allegedly related to a Venezuelan gang.
Alien Enemies No More
Plus: Depriving the children of toys, a curbside rat feast, China wants to talk, and more...
Immigrants and Radicals Have the Same Free Speech Rights as Everyone Else
Campus protests against Israel have revived debates over the limits of First Amendment protections.
Federal Judge Rules Trump's Alien Enemies Act Proclamation Is Unlawful
The Trump-appointed judge found that the administration's use of the Alien Enemies Act "exceeds the scope of the statute and is contrary to the plain, ordinary meaning of the statute's terms."
Trump's Tattoo Fantasy Raises the Question: If He Were Senile, How Would We Know?
The president's bizarre insistence that Kilmar Abrego Garcia "had MS-13 tattooed" on "his knuckles" makes him seem like a confused old man.
Federal Court Issues Two Important Rulings Against Trump in Alien Enemies Act Case
Federal district court Judge Fernando Rodriguez ruled that Trump invoked the AEA illegally, and that migrants threatened with deportation under the Act can file class action habeas petitions.
Cato/FIRE Amicus Brief Against Speech-Based Deportations of Foreign Students
The brief gives a good explanation of why such actions violate the First Amendment.
