Radio host Charlamagne tha God wants to know why folks are “raising hell” about “gang members being sent away” following the deportation of more than 250 alleged illegal gang members.
During “The Breakfast Club” radio show on Tuesday, the hosts discussed comments made by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt about the Trump administration’s deportation of more than 250 illegal alien gang members to El Salvador over the weekend. Those prisoners included 21 MS-13 gang members and more than 230 Tren de Aragua members, Leavitt noted on Monday. Trump’s administration said it has used his legal authority of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to deport them.
“This [is] why I want to know more when it comes to the deportations,” Charlamagne said. “Because deporting illegal immigrants who have committed crimes, I understand that. So why are folks fighting about gang members being sent away?”
“Like, there are some other deportation cases, I’m sure they could be fighting about, like folks who’ve been in this country for a long time, not committing no crimes, paying taxes, but have gotten caught up in the process,” he added. “Those are folks they should be fighting for. Why are they raising hell about a gang being deported?”
One of the cohosts on the show, DJ Envy, agreed and said he understands the idea of “due process,” but added, “If they a gang member and they have warrants, nah. Like who are we fighting for?”
“Are we fighting for good people or are we fighting for people that’ve been paying their taxes … or are we fighting for gang members?” he added.
On Saturday, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg issued an order demanding that the deportations cease. The Trump administration ignored this order, and has since said that the flights were already in the air when the order was issued, as previously reported. The White House is arguing that the judge did not have any “lawful basis” for such an order.
A group of Democratic senators also issued a statement condemning Saturday’s deportations and Trump invoking “the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport noncitizens without due process,” it read.
“This attempt to use an archaic wartime law—not used since World War II—for immigration enforcement is yet another unlawful and brazen power grab,” it added. “Let’s be clear: we are not at war, and immigrants are not invading our country. Furthermore, courts determine whether people have broken the law—not a president acting alone, and not immigration agents picking and choosing who gets imprisoned or deported … These protections are there to help ensure U.S. citizens aren’t wrongfully deported, or people who haven’t committed a crime aren’t wrongfully punished,” the statement continued.
Mary Margaret Olohan contributed to this piece.
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