Source: The Atlantic
by Conor Friedersdorf
“Early in American history, James Madison, the chief architect of the Constitution, warned that when the federal government seizes new powers to target foreign nationals, the rights of American citizens are at risk. The year was 1798, a time of tension with France. President John Adams was about to sign the Alien and Sedition Acts, including the Alien Enemies Act –the law the Trump administration is now citing to justify deporting hundreds of people to a brutal prison in El Salvador without due process. … His concern would prove to be justified on many different occasions in ensuing centuries. And it is newly relevant today, thanks to the Trump administration’s capricious, spectacle-driven treatment of foreign nationals, some here legally, others illegally [sic].” (03/27/25)