Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem botched questions about habeas corpus at a Senate hearing Tuesday, falsely asserting the check on the government’s power to detain people actually gives President Trump a “constitutional right” to conduct deportations.
Why it matters: Top Trump adviser Stephen Miller recently floated the idea of suspending habeas corpus if courts impede the administration’s efforts to deport immigrants.
Driving the news: Noem was asked about habeas corpus during a Senate hearing Tuesday.
“Habeas corpus is a constitutional right that the president has to be able to remove people from this country,” Noem said.
Reality check: Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) interrupted Noem: “Excuse me, that’s incorrect.”
“Habeas corpus is the legal principle that requires that the government provide a public reason for detaining and imprisoning people. If not for that protection, the government could simply arrest people, including American citizens, and hold them indefinitely for no reason.”
“Habeas corpus is the foundational right that separates free societies like America from police states like North Korea.”
State of play: Miller said earlier this month that habeas corpus can be “suspended in a time of invasion.”
The administration has repeatedly cast undocumented immigration as “invasion” to invoke war-time powers to speed up removals.
Noem on Tuesday said she has not spoken with Miller about suspending habeas corpus.
Zoom in: Noem went on to falsely say the president has the power to suspend habeas corpus.
“I support habeas corpus,” Noem said. “I also recognize that the president of the United States has the authority under the Constitution to decide if it should be suspended or not.”
Article I of the Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the authority to suspend habeas corpus “in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.”
What we’re watching: Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) also grilled Noem on her understanding of the laws outlining habeas corpus.
Noem said she did not know what constitutional provision governs the suspension of habeas corpus. Kim responded that it is in Article I, which outlines the powers given to Congress.
