From Caracas to Chicago: Trump’s Article II powers face their biggest tests yet
President Donald Trump has spent the bulk of his second White House term testing the limits of his Article II authorities, both at home and abroad – a defining constitutional...
By Fox News · Fox News
President Donald Trump has spent the bulk of his second White House term testing the limits of his Article II authorities, both at home and abroad – a defining constitutional fight that legal experts expect to continue to play out in the federal courts for the foreseeable future. These actions have included the U.S. capture of Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro, who was deposed during a U.S. military raid in Caracas earlier this month, and Trump's continued fight to deploy National Guard troops in Democrat-led localities, despite the stated objections of state and local leaders. The moves have drawn reactions ranging from praise to sharp criticism, while raising fresh legal questions about how far a sitting president can go in wielding power at home and abroad. Legal experts told Fox News Digital in a series of interviews that they do not expect Trump's executive powers to be curtailed, at least not significantly or immediately, by the federal courts in the near-term. TRUMP OUSTING OF MADURO DRAWS PARALLELS TO US RAID IN PANAMA – BUT THERE ARE SOME MAJOR CONTRASTS Despite near-certain challenges from Maduro – who would likely argue any U.S. arrest in Venezuela is illegal, echoing Manuel Noriega’s failed strategy decades ago – experts say Trump’s Justice Department would have little trouble citing court precedent and prior Office of Legal Counsel guidance to justify his arrest and removal. U.S. presidents have long enjoyed a wider degree of authority on foreign affairs issues – including acting unilaterally to order extraterritorial arrests. Like other U.S. presidents, Trump can cite guidance published in the late 1980s to argue Maduro's arrest was made within the "national interest" or to protect U.S. persons and property. Even if an arrest were viewed as infringing on another country’s sovereignty, experts say Trump could cite ample court precedent and longstanding Office of Legal Counsel and Justice Department guidance to argue the action was legally sound. A 19…