President Donald Trump and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele present a united front during a friendly White House meeting on April 14, 2025, defending the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man mistakenly sent to a Salvadoran mega-prison despite U.S. courts ordering his return. Bukele expresses his honor at meeting Trump, praising the U.S. for its “remarkable” efforts to stop illegal immigration at the border, while Trump emphasizes that the border remains a major issue, claiming that “criminals were pouring into the U.S.” before his administration’s crackdown.
Speaking from the Oval Office, Trump asserts that U.S. courts do not dictate America’s foreign policy, a stance echoed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who describes Abrego Garcia as an El Salvadoran citizen illegally in the U.S., simply “sent back to his country of origin.” Bukele, seated beside Trump, dismisses the idea of returning Abrego Garcia as “preposterous,” stating, “We’re not very fond of releasing terrorists,” and adding that he won’t “smuggle” anyone back to the U.S. The Department of Justice, in a court filing on April 13, argues that federal courts lack the authority to force the administration to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return, a position reinforced by Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller, who insists it’s not the administration’s job to bring him back and claims that returning him would constitute a “kidnapping” of an El Salvadoran citizen.
Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old father of a five-year-old autistic son, arrives in the U.S. in 2011 at age 16, fleeing gang violence in El Salvador. In 2019, an immigration judge grants him “withholding of removal” status after he faces death threats from gangs, determining that he would likely face persecution if deported to El Salvador. Despite this protection, he is arrested by ICE on March 12, 2025, after completing a shift at a construction site in Maryland, and deported on March 15 as part of a broader operation targeting alleged gang members.
The Trump administration uses the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport over 250 individuals, including Abrego Garcia, to El Salvador’s Center for the Confinement of Terrorism (CECOT), a notorious 40,000-capacity “mega-prison” known for its harsh conditions and role in Bukele’s anti-gang crackdown. The administration initially labels Abrego Garcia an MS-13 gang member based on a 2019 confidential informant’s claim—alleging he is a member of a clique that doesn’t operate in Maryland—and his attire of a Chicago Bulls hat and hoodie. However, his lawyers, including Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, consistently deny any gang affiliation, noting he has no criminal record in the U.S. or El Salvador.
The deportation sparks immediate legal challenges. On April 4, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis orders the Trump administration to return Abrego Garcia by April 7, calling his deportation “an illegal act” and rejecting the government’s claim of lacking jurisdiction due to his custody in El Salvador. The Supreme Court, in a 9-0 ruling on April 10, upholds that the administration must “facilitate” his return, though it later pauses the order on April 13, giving Abrego Garcia’s lawyers until April 15 to respond.
The administration admits the deportation is an “administrative error” but doubles down, with Attorney General Pam Bondi claiming there’s “a lot of evidence” of Abrego Garcia’s gang ties—evidence that remains unsubstantiated in court, as Judge Xinis notes the absence of any formal charges or documentation. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also alleges Abrego Garcia is an MS-13 “leader,” a claim his legal team refutes, pointing to his clean record and family life in Maryland, where he works as a sheet metal apprentice and lives with his U.S.-citizen wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, and their disabled son.
Bukele’s refusal to release Abrego Garcia aligns with his broader cooperation with Trump’s immigration policies, a partnership highlighted during their White House meeting. Since February 2025, El Salvador has been working with the U.S. to imprison deportees in CECOT, targeting migrants the U.S. identifies as affiliated with dangerous foreign gangs like MS-13 and the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, for a reported $6 million annual fee from the U.S. government. This collaboration begins after Rubio meets Bukele on February 3, 2025, and intensifies with Trump invoking the Alien Enemies Act on March 15 to expedite deportations without standard immigration proceedings. The Supreme Court recently gives the Trump administration the green light to continue deporting suspected Venezuelan gang members under the Act, further solidifying the U.S.-El Salvador partnership. Bukele’s anti-gang campaign, launched in March 2022, has jailed tens of thousands, drastically reducing El Salvador’s murder rate but drawing accusations of human rights abuses, including mass detentions without evidence.
The controversy over Abrego Garcia’s deportation is part of a broader pattern of aggressive immigration enforcement by the Trump administration. On April 11, an immigration judge rules that Columbia University pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil can be deported, following Rubio’s argument that Khalil’s role in anti-Israel protests and alleged anti-Semitic activities justifies his removal. Khalil’s lawyers have until April 23 to appeal, a case that could set a precedent for future protester deportations. Meanwhile, the administration continues deporting alleged gang members, with Rubio announcing on April 13 that 10 more individuals are sent to CECOT from Guantánamo Bay, where the U.S. has been holding some detainees.
April 14 reveals ongoing tensions, with posts on X reflecting public outrage over Bukele’s flippant dismissal of the issue and Trump’s apparent indifference during the Oval Office meeting. The administration’s defiance of judicial orders draws criticism from Democrats, with Maryland Governor Wes Moore urging the government to correct its admitted error. The legal battle persists, with a hearing scheduled for April 15 in Federal District Court in Maryland to discuss next steps, as Abrego Garcia remains in CECOT, separated from his family.
Historically, the Alien Enemies Act, last widely used during World War II to detain Japanese Americans, has been controversial for its broad executive powers. Trump’s use of the Act marks a significant escalation in immigration policy, raising questions about due process and the balance of power between the judiciary and the executive branch. The partnership with Bukele, while praised by Trump allies like Rubio for enhancing regional security, is criticized by immigration advocates for enabling human rights violations and undermining U.S. legal standards.
Sources:
- Video: [Trump and Bukele’s Oval Office comments on Abrego Garcia]
- Web sources: bbc.com, npr.org, thedailybeast.com, cnn.com, theguardian.com, washingtonpost.com, theatlantic.com, abcnews.go.com, politico.com, reuters.com, nytimes.com, rollingstone.com
- Posts on X reflecting public sentiment and updates
