Top Trump adviser Stephen Miller made headlines Friday with a controversial statement: the Trump team is looking into ways to take away basic legal rights from undocumented immigrants.
Speaking outside the White House, Miller said the administration might try to suspend “due process”—which means people could be detained or deported without going through the legal system or getting a fair hearing. This protection is a fundamental right for everyone in the U.S., regardless of citizenship.
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Miller says there’s a part of the Constitution that allows the government to take this step during an invasion. He claimed that the number of immigrants entering the country is like an “invasion,” and that’s why they’re considering this drastic move.
In an interview last week, Trump also made it clear that he’s frustrated with how long it takes to deport people because of legal rules and court procedures. “I was elected to get them the hell out of here,” he told NBC’s Kristen Welker.
When asked if he’s supposed to follow the Constitution, Trump shrugged and said, “I don’t know.”
Here’s the catch: the Supreme Court recently ruled that immigrants still must be given a chance to fight their case in court. Judges in different states have also said that calling immigration an “invasion” doesn’t legally hold up.
Legal experts warn that suspending due process is a dangerous move. It’s only happened four times in U.S. history—like during the Civil War and right after Pearl Harbor. And even then, it was seen as extreme.
