Her comments mark the latest development in an escalating showdown between the government and a federal judge.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said that a federal judge who blocked the Trump administration from invoking the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to remove illegal immigrants has “no right” to ask questions on flights carrying deported individuals.
U.S. District Judge James Boasberg had given the Trump administration until Tuesday to respond to his questions about deportation flights carrying alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang, which was designated by the administration as a foreign terrorist organization last month, over the past weekend following an order that he issued to suspend deportations after the administration invoked the 1798 law. He extended the deadline for another day, giving the government until Thursday to respond.
But Bondi told Fox News on Wednesday that such questions are inappropriate and that the judge has “no right” to ask those questions and “no power” to order the government to return those flights back to the United States, adding that she believes “liberal” judges are issuing orders on matters they have no jurisdiction over.
“They’re meddling in foreign affairs. They’re meddling in our government,” she told the outlet. “And the question should be, why is a judge trying to protect terrorists who have invaded our country over American citizens?”
On Wednesday, with the deadline nearing, Bondi said Boasberg had no “business, no power” to order the administration to return the flights. She said it has been a “pattern” from liberal judges to order things they have no jurisdiction to do.
The attorney general said that the Trump administration will continue to carry out deportation flights of Tren de Aragua members who are illegally inside the United States.
“We are going to deport them, and we’re going to continue to deport them. We will honor what the court says, but we will appeal, and we will continue to fight terrorists within our country,” Bondi said, adding that Department of Justice (DOJ) attorneys “are working on this” case and “will answer appropriately” to Boasberg’s questions.
Her remarks on Wednesday are the latest development in a showdown between the federal government and the judge, who temporarily blocked deportations under the Alien Enemies Act. President Donald Trump has called for the judge’s impeachment, while other administration officials have said that the judge has exceeded his authority in preventing the government from dealing with what it described as national security matters and foreign policy.
