Fact check: Obama deported millions of illegals without any court hearings/"due process

1. Summary of the results

The analyses confirm that Obama's administration did deport millions of people - specifically more than 3 million according to multiple sources, making him the president with the highest number of formal deportations in American history ^{[1] [2] [3]}. However, none of the sources provide evidence supporting the claim that these deportations occurred without court hearings or due process ^{[1] [2] [4]}.

The Obama administration's approach focused on formal removals rather than returns, with 85% of all removals and returns in FY 2016 being of noncitizens who had recently crossed the U.S. border unlawfully ^[4]. Additionally, over 90% of interior removals were of individuals convicted of serious crimes ^[4].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The original statement omits several crucial contextual factors:

• Prioritization strategy: The Obama administration specifically targeted noncitizens with criminal records and recent unauthorized border crossers, rather than conducting indiscriminate deportations ^{[4] [3]}
• Economic impact: Research cited shows that increased deportations during Obama's tenure did not lead to more job opportunities or higher wages for U.S.-born workers - in fact, for every half million people deported, there were 44,000 fewer jobs for American-born workers ^[1]
• Legal challenges: The Obama administration faced significant legal obstacles, including a Supreme Court tie that blocked Obama's executive immigration order ^[5]
• Historical comparison: While Obama had high deportation numbers, there were actually fewer removals and returns under his administration than the two prior administrations when considering total enforcement actions ^[4]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The statement contains a significant unsubstantiated claim regarding the lack of due process. None of the analyzed sources provide evidence that deportations occurred "without any court hearings/due process" ^{[1] [2] [4]}. This represents a potentially misleading characterization of Obama's deportation policies.

The use of the term "illegals" is inflammatory language that may indicate bias, as it dehumanizes individuals and is not the terminology used in official government documentation or neutral reporting.

The statement also lacks nuance about the Obama administration's targeted approach, which focused on specific categories of individuals rather than mass deportations without consideration of individual circumstances ^{[4] [3]}. Critics like the ACLU did condemn Obama's deportation record as "horrifying," but this criticism doesn't validate the specific claim about due process violations ^[6].