ACLU Begins Action to Gain Access to Trump Plans for Mass Deportations John Moore/Getty

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed a lawsuit against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Monday seeking information about how the agency might execute President-elect Donald Trump’s plans for a mass deportation program of illegal migrants.

The ACLU is suing the agency to obtain clues about ICE Air Operations, the network of chartered flights used to repatriate thousands of illegal migrants every year after they’ve been ordered deported.

The ACLU says it aims to shed light on how such operation could be rapidly expanded to fulfill Trump’s pledge for mass deportations upon entering office and how the U.S. military could be involved.

Trump has vowed to begin the “largest mass deportation operation” of illegal aliens in American history on his first day in office next year, a threat that he has doubled down on since winning the presidential race earlier this month.

On Monday, Trump confirmed a report he intended to declare a national emergency to activate military resources as part of the mass deportation operation.

The Guardian reports the legal action follows the ACLU Foundation of Southern California (ACLU SoCal) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking details on how ICE’s privately chartered flights might be expanded to expedite deportations.

According to the ACLU, ICE failed to respond to the FOIA request, which was filed in August.

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“Little is known about how President-elect Trump would carry out its mass deportation agenda, but what we do know is that this proposal has already instilled fear among immigrant communities,” Eva Bitran, director of immigrants’ rights at ACLU SoCal, said in a statement.

“The public has a right to know how its taxpayer dollars could be used to fund deportation flights that would tear apart not only families, but also our communities.”

Trump’s promise is not without precedent.

In the 1950s, President Dwight D. Eisenhower carried out the largest deportation program of illegal aliens — sending about 1.2 million illegals back to their native countries in the process.

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