Administration officials said they expect the fight over using the wartime act to ultimately head to the Supreme Court.

Trump officials said the deportations don’t violate a judge’s order barring use of the Alien Enemies Act for removals -- but also questioned the order’s validity.

While the White House insists it has complied with a recent court order temporarily blocking the president from invoking a rarely used wartime authority, ABC News' review of flight data and court documents suggests the Trump administration ignored the court's ruling.