another loss for Trump

Headline (paywall):

Supreme Court Extends Block on Deportation of Some Alleged Venezuelan Gang Members
Trump signed a proclamation in March to allow removal of alleged Tren de Aragua members under the Alien Enemies Act.

The Supreme Court on May 16 agreed to block the government from deporting some alleged Venezuelan gang members under the Alien Enemies Act.

“The application for an injunction pending further proceedings is granted,” the court said in an unsigned order.

Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas dissented.

The court also acknowledged it may have to schedule an oral argument in the case known as A.A.R.P. and W.M.M. v. Trump at some point in the future after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit revisits the case. A.A.R.P. and W.M.M. are the initials of two of the detainees.

“Additionally, [the detainees] suggested this Court treat the application as a petition for a writ of certiorari; doing so, the petition is granted,” the order said.

A writ of certiorari is a court order that allows the justices to move forward with hearing an appeal. When certiorari is granted, the Supreme Court typically holds an oral argument in the case.

On March 14, President Donald Trump signed a proclamation in which he officially declared that Tren de Aragua, a designated foreign terrorist organization associated with Venezuela, “is perpetrating, attempting, and threatening an invasion or predatory incursion against the territory of the United States.”

The president invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to authorize the “immediate apprehension, detention, and removal” of members of the group who are Venezuelan citizens 14 years of age or older and who are not U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents of the United States.

The Supreme Court had on April 19 issued a temporary block preventing the Trump administration from deporting an unspecified number of Venezuelan men currently in immigration custody in Texas who are alleged to be members of a criminal gang.

In the new order, the Supreme Court sent the case back to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, instructing it to address the detainees’ claims.

Although the Supreme Court directed the government not to remove the detainees under the authority of the Alien Enemies Act, the order states that the government “may remove the named plaintiffs or putative class members under other lawful authorities.”

So all is not completely lost—just mostly lost.

Me, I'd uphold Trump's right to deport these fuckers. In Denver, Colorado, the homicide rate has gone down nearly 60% in calendar year 2025. The linked reference, Legal Insurrection, argues this is thanks to ICE deportations. Mainstream-media outlets, however (including a few Fox-affiliated ones), take special pains not to give Trump any credit, instead crediting local efforts at policing, plus local legislation. Some are even reporting that the 60% drop, far from being sudden, is part of a years-long trend, implying it has nothing to do with Trump's aggressive revitalization of ICE. To this, quoting journalist Sara Carter, Legal Insurrection paints a very different picture:

This marked decrease in violence comes after intensified immigration enforcement under the Trump administration, which had made the Denver metropolitan area a key focus for removals of criminal migrants. ICE has acted swiftly, arresting 538 illegal aliens across multiple cities, including Denver. Shortly thereafter, the agency expanded its efforts in Colorado, zeroing in on members of Tren de Aragua.

Breitbart News reports that despite these federal initiatives, local Democratic leaders resisted cooperation with ICE. Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Colorado Governor Jared Polis were among those who worked to oppose the administration’s actions, which prompted the Trump administration to initiate legal action against Denver and state officials for obstructing federal immigration enforcement.

Carter is suggesting that the reduction of crime is sudden, and that local efforts have been aimed at resisting Trump and ICE, so the reduction has come in spite of local efforts.

So: pick your spin. I know which side has been more consistently truthful since at least 2016.