Perhaps the biggest common theme of Donald Trump’s second term is that his administration has aggressively used federal power to punish those deemed to be its — or his — enemies.

Some foreign students who criticized Israel have had their visas revoked and have been whisked into ICE detention.

Venezuelan nationals with tattoos — some likely members of a foreign gang, some likely not — have been deported to El Salvador and imprisoned there.

Major law firms that displeased Trump have been hit with executive orders aimed at driving their clients away and destroying their businesses.

Elite universities that were the site of protests or had policies the administration dislikes have seen hundreds of millions of dollars in research funding revoked.

It’s a frightening turn for American governance. Trump and the hard-right appointees who staff this new administration seem intent on ruining the lives of the people they’ve deemed enemies of the state, punishing them with state power.

Trump officials are punishing enemies first — with no process or fairness beforehand

What sets much of this apart is that there is no semblance of process or fairness before any of these decisions are made.

Detentions,........

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