PULSE POINTS:

❓ What Happened: A group of Democratic lawmakers wants to travel to El Salvador to lobby for the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an MS-13 gang member deported by the Justice Department.

👥 Who’s Involved: The key figures are Senator Chris Van Hollen and Representatives Maxwell Frost and Yassamin Ansari.

📍 Where & When: The stunt follows a White House visit involving President Donald J. Trump and President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador, where the press raised Garcia’s case.

💬 Key Quote: “Of course I’m not going to do it,” said President Bukele regarding returning Garcia, an El Salvadoran citizen, to the U.S.

⚠️ Impact: The situation highlights tensions between leftist legislators and judges and the U.S. and Salvadoran governments.

IN FULL:

Leading Democratic lawmakers, spearheaded by Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), are prepared to visit El Salvador to advocate for the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an MS-13 gang member deported to the Central American country’s CECOT super-prison by the Trump administration. During a White House visit, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele declared that he would not send Garcia back to the U.S.

Van Hollen has formally contacted El Salvador’s ambassador in Washington, requesting a dialogue with President Bukele. The Maryland Democrat announced his intention to monitor Garcia’s condition and negotiate for his release in El Salvador if he is not returned to the U.S. by midweek. Democratic colleagues, including Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-FL) and Rep. Yassamin Ansari (D-AZ), have expressed readiness to join the potential delegation.

The push to bring Garcia back stems from the Trump administration deporting him contrary to a 2019 immigration judge’s order prohibiting his return to El Salvador, due to rival gang members presenting a threat to him.

.@POTUS, @AGPamBondi, and Deputy Chief of Staff @StephenM destroy Fake News CNN pic.twitter.com/y9c1imt7Af

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 14, 2025

Contradicting media reports presenting Garcia as an “innocent” father, the courts also adjudicated that he was an illegal alien who had failed to demonstrate he was not a danger to Americans at an immigration bond hearing. Additionally, the relevant ruling states that “sufficient” was presented proving Garcia was a gang member, which he had failed to rebut.

The Trump White House’s deputy chief of staff for policy, Stephen Miller, contends that Garcia’s deportation was in accordance with federal law. “Nobody was mistakenly deported anywhere. That’s a big fact that all of you, most of you, have gotten wrong,” Miller told the press outside the White House on Monday. He added: “The only mistake that was made is a lawyer put an incorrect line in a legal filing that’s since been relieved… [Garcia] is El Salvadoran. He is an illegal alien. He was deported to El Salvador.”

While the courts have asked the Trump administration to facilitate Garcia’s return, the fact he is an El Salvadoran citizen in the custody of El Salvador puts him beyond U.S. jurisdiction. During Bukele’s visit, the Salvadoran leader dismissed calls to return Garcia to the U.S., describing such expectations as “preposterous.” He questioned how he could “smuggle” Garcia into America without violating the law, given his status as a “terrorist.”

WATCH:

.@nayibbukele: “The question is preposterous. How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States? I don’t have the power to return him to the United States.” pic.twitter.com/PyrXqO4bvJ

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 14, 2025