President Trump is asking the Supreme Court to weigh in on whether he has the authority to use the Alien Enemies Act to quickly deport suspected members of a Venezuelan gang.

On Friday, Mr. Trump submitted an emergency appeal asking the high court to overturn an order from a district court judge, James Boasberg, that blocked his use of the 18th-century law. 

The acting solicitor general, Sarah Harris, said in the filing that the case “presents fundamental questions about who decides how to conduct sensitive national security-related operations in this country. …The Constitution supplies a clear answer: the President. The republic cannot afford a different choice.”

“To protect the country against [Tren de Aragua] members engaged in a campaign of terror, murder, and kidnapping, aimed at destabilizing our country, the Administration detained designated TdA members identified through a rigorous process. The government prepared to immediately remove them by plane to El Salvador, which had agreed to detain these foreign terrorists after extensive negotiations,” Ms. Harris said. 

The government asserts that Judge Boasberg’s order blocking the use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport the suspected gang members is “forcing the United States to harbor individuals whom national-security officials have identified as members of a foreign terrorist organization bent upon grievously harming Americans.”

Mr. Trump issued a proclamation on March 15 that invoked the Alien Enemies Act. However, Judge Boasberg issued a temporary restraining order to block the administration from using the law.

“Given the exigent circumstances that it [the court] has been made aware of this morning, it has determined that an immediate Order is warranted to maintain the status quo until a hearing can be set,” the judge said. 

On Wednesday, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled two to one against Mr. Trump’s request to lift Judge Boasberg’s order. 

In the more than 220 years since the law was enacted, it has only been used during wartime, which has led to questions about whether America is in a state of war that would create the conditions for the law to be invoked. The law states that it can be invoked when there is a “declared war” or when “any invasion or predatory incursion is perpetrated, attempted, or threatened against the territory of the United States.”

Additionally, the government’s swift removal of suspected gang members had raised concerns about whether they were given due process as civil rights advocates noted some of the individuals who were removed insisted they were not gang members. 

The Trump administration has also argued that the plaintiffs in the case filed their lawsuit in the “wrong court” and, therefore, “cannot obtain relief” in this case. 

The Trump administration asked for a quick response from the Supreme Court, as it requested a response to its appeal by April 1.