Columbia University protest ringleader Mahmoud Khalil was being investigated as a potential national security threat, a source said Monday — as President Trump warned the anti-Israel agitator’s bust will be the “first arrest of many.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio was “presented with intelligence” that determined Khalil — a Syrian-born Palestinian who received his graduate degree from the elite school in December — was a threat to national security, a White House source said.
It wasn’t immediately known what intelligence Rubio was shown. But the source said the Department of Homeland Security has been “gathering intel” on those “actively engaging in supporting Hamas” — not just everyday protesters — since Trump’s executive order cracking down on anti-Israel demonstrators in the US on green cards.
DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin confirmed this in a statement that also alleged Khalil — who was a driving force behind many of the anti-Israel protests, building takeovers and encampments that have plagued the Ivy League school for more than a year — was involved in activities tied to Hamas.
“On March 9, 2025, in support of President Trump’s executive orders prohibiting anti-Semitism, and in coordination with the Department of State, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University graduate student. Khalil led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization,” she said.
“ICE and the Department of State are committed to enforcing President Trump’s executive orders and to protecting U.S. national security.”
Trump took to Truth Social Monday afternoon to boast about Khalil’s arrest, and fired a shot across the bow of other colleges where anti-Israel protests have taken place.
“Following my previously signed Executive Orders, ICE proudly apprehended and detained Mahmoud Khalil, a Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student on the campus of Columbia University,” he posted.
“This is the first arrest of many to come. We know there are more students at Columbia and other Universities across the Country who have engaged in pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity, and the Trump Administration will not tolerate it,” he warned.
Khalil, 30, was arrested at his university-owned apartment on Saturday, and is now confined at Jena/LaSalle Detention Facility in Louisiana, according to ICE records and a statement by his attorney, Amy Greer.
“They’re staging this guy for removal, but I don’t know where they’re gonna send him. We don’t have charter flights to send him to Syria,” another source said.
A Manhattan federal judge temporarily halted Khalil’s deportation Monday after the Columbia grad filed a petition with the court alleging that ICE had detained him illegally.
Khalil, who earned his graduate degree at the School of International and Public Affairs, was the lead negotiator for Columbia United Apartheid Divest — a group that sympathizes with terror organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah and calls for the “end of Western civilization” — during last spring’s anti-Israel protests and student encampment at the university.
Despite graduating in December, Khalil’s involvement in disruptive campus protests continued at nearby Columbia-affiliated Barnard College, which was the site of two campus building takeovers in recent weeks.
President Trump makes a shrewd move to stop activist judges…
Invokes Rule 65c of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure that federal courts require plaintiffs post security equal to the federal government’s potential costs and damages from a wrongly issued preliminary injunction or temporary restraining order.
Many are cheering President Trump’s latest move to shut down the left’s activist judges. This move comes after the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling, where Amy Coney Barrett (and Justice Roberts) sided with the left once again and backed a federal activist judge’s power to force President Trump to hand over $2 billion to USAID contractors.
Yet another blow to Trump’s America First mandate.
So, now we know, it’s not just federal judges weaponizing the courts—now even the Supreme Court is getting in on the act. And worse, it’s coming from justices who are supposed to be on our side.
…
Many are cheering President Trump’s latest move to shut down the left’s activist judges. This move comes after the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling, where Amy Coney Barrett (and Justice Roberts) sided with the left once again and backed a federal activist judge’s power to force President Trump to hand over $2 billion to USAID contractors.
Yet another blow to Trump’s America First mandate.
So, now we know, it’s not just federal judges weaponizing the courts—now even the Supreme Court is getting in on the act. And worse, it’s coming from justices who are supposed to be on our side.
We recently covered that very story, reminding readers that we’ve had concerns about ACB from the start.
So, now what can be done right now?
Well, thankfully, President Trump is working on this behind the scenes. He’s just issued a memorandum that seeks to stop these left-wing judges in their tracks. Under new rules, anyone suing to stop the government’s actions will have to put up a financial bond. If the lawsuit fails, they’ll be on the hook for any costs or damages their legal challenge caused.
This move is meant to hold people accountable for filing weak or politically motivated cases against the federal government.
This is music to many people’s ears…
🚨The Trump administration has issued a new memorandum aimed at combatting those seeking universal injunctions against it to halt its policies.
It is going to demand that per federal rules of civil procedure, those bringing the cases put up injunction bonds.
“it is the policy of the United States to demand that parties seeking injunctions against the Federal Government must cover the costs and damages incurred if the Government is ultimately found to have been wrongfully enjoined or restrained. Federal courts should hold litigants accountable for their misrepresentations and ill-granted injunctions.”
Trump’s plan to stop these activist judges is simple but clever—use the laws already on the books to hold them accountable. It’s a strong start, but let’s be honest, we need even stronger measures in place. The left has spent years stacking the courts with activists disguised as judges, and it won’t stop unless the American people get serious about fighting back. That starts locally. Every judge’s race matters, because today’s small-town activist could be tomorrow’s federal menace, wreaking havoc on the entire country.
It’s time to get involved before it’s too late.
Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Ensures the Enforcement of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65(c)
ENSURING ACCOUNTABILITY IN FEDERAL COURTS: Today, President Donald J. Trump signed a memorandum directing federal agencies to enforce a rule mandating financial guarantees from parties requesting injunctions. This ensures coverage of potential costs or losses if the court later deems an injunction wrongly issued.
- The memorandum instructs agency heads, in consultation with the Attorney General, to request under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65(c) that federal courts require plaintiffs post security equal to the federal government’s potential costs and damages from a wrongly issued preliminary injunction or temporary restraining order.
- Security refers to a financial guarantee compensating the government for losses if an injunction is later found unjustified.
- This applies to all lawsuits seeking preliminary injunctions or temporary restraining orders where the government can demonstrate monetary harm from the requested relief.
- Agencies must justify security amounts based on reasoned assessments of harm, ensuring courts deny or dissolve injunctions if plaintiffs fail to pay up, absent good cause.
STOPPING JUDICIAL OVERREACH AND FRIVOLOUS LAWSUITS: By issuing this memorandum, President Trump is ensuring the democratic process remains intact by curbing activist judges and holding litigants accountable.
- Unelected district judges have issued sweeping injunctions beyond their authority, inserting themselves into executive policymaking and stalling policies voters supported.
- Activist groups file meritless suits for fundraising and political gain, facing no consequences when they lose, while taxpayers bear the costs and delays.
- The Justice Department is forced to divert resources from public safety to fight these frivolous cases, weakening effective governance.
- Enforcing Rule 65(c) deters such litigation by holding plaintiffs accountable for costs and damages if their injunctions are baseless, protecting taxpayer funds and judicial integrity.
STRENGTHENING AMERICA’S JUDICIAL SYSTEM: President Trump is committed to protecting our democracy, challenging judicial overreach, and ensuring the rule of law is upheld.
- Injunctions can cost taxpayers millions or even billions of dollars, especially when they mandate continued funding.
- President Trump appointed high-performing “superstar” judges according to a respected study. Trump’s judges occupied 9 of the top 11 spots for productivity, and 9 of the top 10 spots for influence.
- President Trump’s judges are also rated the least partisan.
- Multiple Supreme Court justices have recently warned that “single district-court judges” acting outside their judicial power are “abusing” the power entrusted to them.
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