When Due Process Disappears: Professor Stephen Vladeck on the Alien Enemies Act

See You In Court

Can the U.S. government deport someone without a hearing—or even proof of identity? In this powerful clip, Professor Stephen Vladeck, constitutional law expert and author of The Shadow Docket, explains why recent actions under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act should alarm every American. If the government doesn’t need to prove you’re undocumented, what’s stopping them from targeting anyone?

Vladeck exposes the dangers of bypassing judicial review and warns of the precedent this sets—not just for immigrants, but for all citizens.

🎧 For the full conversation on how the Supreme Court's secretive "shadow docket" is reshaping American justice, listen to the full episode here:
👉 https://seeyouincourt.podbean.com/e/the-shadow-docket-with-professor-stephen-vladeck/

📺 Or watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/kfK3Fl1_Qgw
📘 Read The Shadow Docket: https://www.amazon.com/Shadow-Docket-Supreme-Undermine-Republic/dp/1541602633
🌐 Visit: https://seeyouincourtpodcast.org

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#CivilJustice

🎙️ Clip Transcript – Professor Stephen Vladeck on Due Process and the Alien Enemies Act:

"What I find so absolutely fundamental and disturbing about the Venezuelan cases—and this is the assertion of power under the so-called Alien Enemy Act of 1798—is that there is a presumption of due process in this country. That’s something that should not be partisan. We should all be able to abide by it.

So when Stephen Miller, President Trump’s top immigration advisor, is tweeting that illegal immigrants don’t have due process rights—first of all, that’s not true. Even undocumented immigrants have due process rights.

But more importantly—how the hell are you going to prove someone is undocumented?

What is to stop the government from arresting me and saying, “Oh, he doesn’t have any due process rights because he’s a Venezuelan gang member”?

If I had a second in court, I could disprove that. But without due process, I can’t.

So whatever you think of the president and his policies—whatever you think about immigration—the idea that we don’t have judicial review in this country, that courts aren’t supposed to make sure we’re applying these laws to the right people…

Of all the things that have happened in the last few months, that boggles my mind the most.

Because even if you believe in tough laws, you’ve got to make sure they’re applied to the right people.

That should not be an issue on which there are two sides."