The ACLU is making plans to fight Trump’s promises of immigrant raids and mass deportations

WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union filed legal challenges against former President Donald Trump ‘s administration more than 400 times during his time in the White House, helping to halt an array of policies, including separating immigrant children from their parents. Trump’s allies, mindful of the resistance he faced in the White House and anticipating the chance to remake huge swaths of government, have prepared policy books and staffing plans of their own, including one effort known as “Project 2025.” The ACLU shared a memo offering possible responses on immigration policy with The Associated Press ahead of its formal release on Thursday. Separately, Trump has pointed to the Insurrection Act, which gives the president powers to use the military as a domestic police force, and suggested that troops could help handle his immigration plans’ complicated logistics. Legal challenges helped stop the Trump administration from separating immigrant families at the border and degrading immigration protections offered under Temporary Protected Status and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, whose recipients are commonly called “Dreamers.” The group notes that when its challenges weren’t ultimately successful — like when the Supreme Court reversed injunctions against the Trump administration’s ban on travelers from several majority Muslim countries — they nonetheless forced officials to scale back their intentions. Romero said the ACLU is identifying “real, clear guardrails, real barriers — at the very least, they’re speed bumps — for the Trump administration to get over.” “Litigation takes time,” he said, “so if you can preserve the status quo for the longest period of time that is success in our book.” What about Trump’s plans beyond immigration?