Judge Keeps Block on Some Venezuela Deportations

A judge on Monday denied the Trump administration's request to set aside a temporary ban imposed earlier this month on deportations under a little-used 18th-century law.

Washington-based U.S. District Judge James Boasberg's two-week bar on deportations of Venezuelan migrants under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, imposed on March 15, prompted Republican President Donald Trump to call for the judge's impeachment in a process that could lead to his removal.

Lawyers for the administration had asked Boasberg to set aside the temporary ban. The judge's denial on Monday of that request means deportations under the Alien Enemies Act are still temporarily halted.

Separately, a federal appeals court is due to hear arguments on Monday at 1:30 p.m. from government lawyers seeking to halt Boasberg's order.