President Donald Trump confused reporters after claiming he “didn’t sign” the presidential proclamation that invoked the controversial Alien and Enemies Act in order to quickly deport migrants the administration says are part of a Venezuelan gang.
When asked by a reporter about signing the proclamation “in the dark” – rather than at the Oval Office desk or in a public capacity as the president has done with other executive actions – the president denied signing it at all.
“I don’t know when it was signed because I didn’t sign it,” the president said.
Instead, Trump appeared to push the blame for invoking the 18th-century wartime law onto “other people” in his administration including Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“Other people handled it,” Trump said. “But Marco Rubio’s done a great job. And he wanted them out, and we go along with that. We want to get criminals out of our country.”
Despite his claim, the president’s digital signature does appear on the version of the proclamation available on the Federal Register website.
The President’s statement immediately raised alarm bells for some.
“If that’s true, if Donald Trump did not actually sign that proclamation, it’s a big problem because the law specifically requires a proclamation by the president,” asked CNN political analyst Elie Honig, according to The Hill.
There were similar questions on social media.
“Trump just said he didn’t sign his own EO? This is the guy who claimed Joe Biden’s pardons weren’t legitimate, because he used an autopen, but he allowed someone else to sign his executive order?” one X user noted.
“If Trump didn’t sign the proclamation as he claims then everything that happened after is illegal…lol,” another noted.
The White House later clarified that the president was referring to the original Alien Enemies Act, passed by Congress in 1798 and did sign the recent proclamation that invokes the highly controversial set of laws.
“President Trump was obviously referring to the original Aliens Enemies Act that was signed back in 1798,” White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said in a statement.
“The recent Executive Order was personally signed by President Trump invoking the Alien Enemies Act that designated Tren de Aragua as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in order to apprehend and deport these heinous criminals,” Cheung added.
However, the question that prompted Trump’s answer specifically referred to a federal judge’s criticism of the proclamation that was raised earlier in the day during a court hearing.
Judge James Boasberg asked lawyers for the government why the president’s proclamation was “essentially signed in the dark” on the evening of March 14 and then migrants were “rushed onto planes” on the morning of March 15.
The hearing is part of a challenge to Trump’s attempts to invoke the Alien Enemies Act to rapidly deport, without due process, alleged members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang. Those challenging the use of the act say it was done hastily to skirt criminal and immigration laws.
The confusion over Trump’s signature on the proclamation raised also questions over whether the president used an autopen– a mechanical device that uses ink to repeat the signature of an individual – that has recently drawn his own ire.
Though past presidents and their administrations have used autopens, Trump has criticized its use – specifically condemning former president Joe Biden for using it on certain documents. Last week, Trump tried to claim Biden’s use of an autopen should “void” certain documents including presidential pardons.
The Justice Department has said the use of an autopen on official documents is legal.
