Under a seldom applied wartime statute, the U.S. Supreme Court on Saturday temporarily prohibited the Trump administration from deporting a group of Venezuelan migrants it said were gang members. However, the government pleaded with the justices to reverse their decision.

The court's ruling came after attorneys for the American Civil Liberties Union requested an emergency intervention, arguing that scores of Venezuelan migrants were in danger of being deported without the judicial review the justices had previously mandated. Earlier, the justices issued a brief, unsigned ruling directing the Government to refrain from removing any members of the putative class of prisoners from the United States pending additional orders from the Court.

On Saturday afternoon, the Trump administration submitted a response requesting that the court formally deny the ACLU's plea on behalf of the migrants following further consideration of the case. Responding that President Donald Trump would continue his immigration crackdown, the White House did not immediately suggest that the administration would overrule the Supreme Court, perhaps preventing a potential constitutional conflict between the two parts of government.

The Trump administration has already deported more than 200 Venezuelan and Salvadoran males it alleges are gang members to a maximum-security jail in El Salvador, despite the fact that it was unclear where the Venezuelan migrants were going. Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran immigrant who the government acknowledged was deported in error and who caused a stir over its immigration policies, was among the deportees.

Since taking office again on January 20, Trump has occasionally demonstrated a propensity to disregard court rulings; the case has cast doubt on his ability to adhere to the restrictions imposed by the country's highest court.