Whatever legal rationale the Trump Administration cooks up, deporting protesters for things they say is wildly un-American—and possibly unpopular, too.

Lawyers said the Palestinian student activist was handcuffed, shackled and flown to Louisiana by agents he said never identified themselves.

The Trump administration has not been subtle about its intentions. A White House official, speaking anonymously to the Free Press, told the right-leaning media organization that Khalil’s arrest would be a “blueprint” for other actions.

Rubio’s letter notified DHS that he had revoked both targets’ visas, setting in motion plans for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to arrest and attempt to deport them, according to a senior DHS official and another U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe how the operation against Khalil took shape.

Trying to deport Khalil for demonstrating against Israel is an obvious violation of his rights and an attempt to intimidate others, they say.

A DHS official defended Khalil’s detention in an interview on Thursday but did not provide additional details for his arrest.

Some protesters held signs that read "Fight Nazis not students," "Free Mahmoud free Palestine" and "You can’t deport a movement."

I was a student at Columbia University, where I covered tense campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war for the college newspaper and for POLITICO. So I’m familiar with Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia student who I’ve chatted with in the past and appears to be the first target of the Trump administration’s effort to crack down on student protesters.