While FDR once famously said that Americans have "nothing to fear, but fear itself," President-elect Donald Trump won a second term in the White House by weaponizing fear against immigrants. In the closing weeks of the 2024 presidential campaign, the GOP candidate decried the "greatest invasion of history" by pet-eating rapists, murderers and the criminally insane, who he erroneously claimed were responsible for an unprecedented crime wave sweeping the nation.
The president-elect promises to enact his marquee policy of mass deportations beginning on Day 1 of his second administration.
Though President-elect Donald Trump is not usually one to be discouraged by legal niceties, he has nevertheless sought to justify his deportations by citing a controversial piece of 18th-century legislation that was part of a broader legislative campaign to silence political dissent in the United States.
Congress passed the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 as part of the hyper-partisan struggle between John Adams' Federalist Party and Thomas Jefferson's Democratic-Republican Party. Though the Founders had always disagreed about the nature of the American Revolution, their conflicting views on democracy and governance came into clearer relief after the beginning of the French Revolution in 1789.
The violent excesses of the radical French Revolution horrified John Adams and his Federalist Party. By contrast, Thomas Jefferson and his Democratic-Republican Party were far more sympathetic to the republican revolution unfolding in France. The outbreak of the Wars of the French Revolution between the French Republic and Great Britain in 1793 raised the stakes in American politics as Democratic-Republicans supported their sister republic, and Federalists backed the British.
George Washington's administration tried to steer a neutral course between Britain and France, which Jefferson and his supporters saw as a betrayal of the 1778 French alliance that had helped the United States to win its independence. But after John Adams won the election of 1796, Franco-American relations deteriorated. French privateers preyed upon American merchant ships, while French officials snubbed the American diplomats sent to Paris to resolve the issue, demanding bribes before they would agree to discuss U.S. grievances. With President John Adams' support, Congress authorized limited naval warfare against France, beginning the so-called "Quasi-War" in July 1798.
Congress passed the Alien Enemy Act in the context of the political conflict between Federalists and Democratic-Republicans over the Quasi-War. The Federalist-controlled Congress passed a series of laws, known as the Alien and Sedition Acts, that were designed to silence political opposition to the conflict with France by outlawing criticism of the government and restricting access to citizenship for recent immigrants to the United States.
The Federalists targeted resident aliens because they tended to support their Democratic-Republican opponents. Federalists were particularly suspicious of Irish republicans, many of whom had fled Ireland after a failed rebellion against British rule in 1798. Today, about 10% of U.S. citizens proudly claim Irish heritage. In the late-18th century, the U.S. government effectively identified Irish people as enemies of the state.
"In the late-18th century, the U.S. government effectively identified Irish people as enemies of the state."
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The Alien Enemies Act itself only applied in the event of war or invasion by a foreign country. Under these specific circumstances, the president had the authority to detain or deport citizens or subjects of the hostile nation residing in the United States. But the president's authority was not unilateral. The law outlined a procedure for arrest and deportation of enemy aliens that was subject to federal and state courts. The Adams administration never used the Alien Enemies Act because Congress did not declare war against France. Nevertheless, the act remained on the books and was invoked by the U.S. government to justify the shameful internment of German, Italian and Japanese nationals in World War II.
Despite the hyperbole of the campaign trail, the United States is not at war. This is not a matter of opinion; it is a legal principle. Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 of the U.S. Constitution empowers Congress to declare war. Though numerous presidents have launched military adventures since WWII, Congress has not declared war since 1942.
Whether you agree with mass deportations or not, the Alien Enemies Act does not apply during peacetime. But understanding the history of the act does help us to recognize how politicians have demonized different ethnic and racial groups to further their own political ambitions. From the Federalist Party's demonization of Irish people in the 1790s to the GOP's fixation on Latino migrants in the 2020s, it is a sad truth that politicians are all too quick to amass political capital by attacking the most vulnerable members of our society. ♦
Lawrence B.A. Hatter is an award-winning author and associate professor of early American history at Washington State University. These views are his own and do not reflect those of WSU.
