Donald Trump is in the fight of his life. This outcome will determine the future of America.
That’s why President Trump is about to blow a gasket over what a federal judge just ruled.
Clinton Judge Halts Trump Admin From Deportations Of Terrorist Radicals
On Tuesday, a judge appointed by former President Bill Clinton issued a ruling that temporarily halted the Trump administration’s efforts to detain and deport a foreign student linked to antisemitic protests. The decision, handed down by U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald, came in response to a case involving Yunseo Chung, a 21-year-old permanent resident and Columbia University student. Chung faced deportation proceedings due to her role in campus demonstrations, a move that aligns with the Trump administration’s firm stance against foreign students who back terrorism amid escalating anti-Israel unrest on college campuses since the Gaza conflict erupted on October 7, 2023.
Judge Buchwald’s temporary restraining order, directed at President Donald Trump and various government entities, could set a precedent that complicates the administration’s push to detain other foreign radicals involved in similar protests. Chung, who has lived in the U.S. since age 7, was arrested on March 5 for “obstruction of governmental administration” after protesting Columbia’s disciplinary actions against students who seized a campus building in 2024—an incident that reportedly involved holding a university employee hostage.
Chung’s legal filing on Monday painted a different picture, framing her actions as a defense of free expression. “The government’s actions are an unprecedented and unjustifiable assault on First Amendment and other rights, one that cannot stand basic legal scrutiny,” the petition argued. It went on to say, “Since 2023, along with hundreds of her peers, Ms. Chung has also participated in some student protests and demonstrations on Columbia University’s campus related to Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and the devastating toll it has taken on Palestinian civilians. Ms. Chung has not made public statements to the press or otherwise assumed a high-profile role in these protests. She was, rather, one of a large group of college students raising, expressing, and discussing shared concerns.”
The Trump administration, however, sees such activities as a national security concern. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials visited Chung’s family home on March 9, informing them that her permanent resident status was under revocation, according to her petition. This follows a pattern of decisive action, as several student visa holders have already been deported or are pending removal—including Mahmoud Khalil, a Syrian-born leader of the Columbia protests.
In a related case, U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani ruled Tuesday that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) must provide advance notice to the court before deporting Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish national detained for her role in anti-Israel protests at Tufts University. These judicial interventions signal resistance to the administration’s immigration enforcement priorities, which have gained urgency in light of campus chaos.
The Trump administration has also flexed its authority over universities tolerating such unrest. In early March, it yanked over $400 million in funding from Columbia for failing to safeguard Jewish students during the protests. By Friday, the university scrambled to strike a preliminary deal with the administration to restore the funds, agreeing to overhaul protest policies, hire more campus police, and expand its disciplinary staff. Yet, when pressed on March 13 about punishments for involved students, Columbia remained vague, with a spokesman declining to name or number those suspended, expelled, or stripped of degrees.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon, in a Tuesday interview with the Daily Caller News Foundation, revealed ongoing talks with Columbia about tightening scrutiny of incoming foreign students to weed out potential “terrorist” ties. The administration’s proactive measures demonstrate a commitment to protecting American campuses and citizens, even as legal challenges from Clinton-era appointees threaten to slow progress. For now, Chung and others like her remain in limbo, testing the limits of the Trump administration’s resolve.
Trump Administration Stands Firm on Immigrant Expulsions, Citing National Security
The Trump administration has taken a decisive step in its ongoing mission to secure the nation’s borders, invoking the “state secrets” privilege to shield sensitive details of this month’s immigrant expulsions to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act. This move, aimed at protecting America from what the administration describes as a dangerous influx of foreign threats, has sparked a fiery clash with the federal judiciary—an institution that has repeatedly challenged President Donald Trump’s efforts to enforce immigration law.
In a court filing submitted Monday evening by Justice Department officials, the administration made its position clear: “No further information will be provided” to the federal court in Washington, D.C., based on the state secrets privilege. The filing emphasized that the case falls squarely under Trump’s “complete and absolute authority” to remove individuals identified as “designated terrorists participating in a state-sponsored invasion of, and predatory incursion into, the United States.” This language reflects the administration’s unwavering stance that national security trumps judicial overreach.
The expulsions began on March 15, when Trump invoked the Alien Enemies Act to deport 238 Venezuelans and 23 Salvadoran men. The group was swiftly flown to El Salvador and detained in a massive “terrorism” prison operated by the Salvadoran government—an ally in the fight against transnational crime. The administration asserts that all the Venezuelans expelled are members of the notorious Tren de Aragua gang, which it claims, without public evidence, infiltrated the U.S. under orders from the Venezuelan government. While an intelligence document reportedly disputes this narrative, and news outlets have cited family members insisting some deportees are innocent, the Trump administration remains steadfast in its mission to prioritize American safety.
The operation has not gone unchallenged. Federal Judge James E. Boasberg has spent over a week pressing the administration for more details, even issuing a temporary block on further expulsions under the Alien Enemies Act. In a subsequent order, Boasberg went further, mandating individualized hearings for immigrants targeted for deportation—a move the administration views as an unnecessary hurdle to its authority. In response, Trump and his supporters have launched a counteroffensive, accusing Boasberg of judicial activism and calling for his impeachment. On Monday, a federal appeals court heard arguments on the administration’s bid to remove him from the case, signaling an escalating war between the executive and judicial branches.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a key figure in Trump’s foreign policy team, defended the operation in a separate declaration on Monday. He described the expulsions as the result of a “nonpublic, sensitive, and high stakes negotiation”—likely with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele’s government. Rubio warned that revealing more details could strain relationships with U.S. allies and undermine cooperative efforts against criminal networks. This perspective aligns with the State Department’s recent classification of Tren de Aragua, MS-13, and various Mexican criminal groups as “terrorist organizations,” a designation that strengthens the administration’s case for swift and secretive action.
Despite the administration’s resolve, questions linger about who exactly was expelled. News organizations have published the names of the Venezuelans on the flights, along with the identities of two Salvadoran men tied to MS-13. Yet new information continues to emerge, adding layers of complexity. On Monday, two immigrant women submitted declarations in federal court, revealing that eight women were also aboard the planes to El Salvador. Because the Salvadoran prison only houses men, these women were returned to the U.S.—a detail that raises logistical questions but does little to shake the administration’s broader strategy.
In court, Boasberg has given the administration until March 31 to provide more information about the Alien Enemies Act operation if it chooses to do so. But the Justice Department’s filing suggests Trump’s team has no intention of bowing to judicial pressure. For an administration committed to protecting Americans from what it sees as a coordinated assault on the nation’s sovereignty, the state secrets privilege is a vital tool—one that ensures the safety of citizens outweighs the demands of a skeptical judiciary.
The Conservative Column will keep you updated on any more breaking immigration news.
