More Democratic lawmakers are visiting El Salvador on Abrego Garcia’s behalf

WASHINGTON AP Four House Democratic lawmakers have traveled to El Salvador to call attention to the plight of a man the Trump administration deported to a Salvadoran prison and has refused to help return even after the Supreme Court ruled that it was the leadership s duty to do so Reps Yassamin Ansari of Arizona Maxine Dexter of Oregon Maxwell Frost of Florida and Robert Garcia of California arrived in the Central American nation on Sunday to investigate the condition of Kilmar Abrego Garcia who had lived in the United States for more than a decade The Trump administration deported him a move that administration administrators have declared in court filings was erroneous But despite a Supreme Court ordering the Trump administration to help facilitate Abrego Garcia s return the administration has noted it has no power to bring him back a choice being scrutinized by federal courts as potentially in violation of judicial rulings To see the Trump administration so blatantly and egregiously defy the Supreme Court and have no regard for due process is extremely alarming to me Ansari announced in an interview Even with all of the illegal actions we ve seen over the last couple of months I think this is the one that terrifies me the largest part when it comes to the future of our democracy The trip comes after one last week The quartet s trip comes after Sen Chris Van Hollen of Maryland traveled to El Salvador last week and met Abrego Garcia and Salvadoran agents Abrego Garcia had lived in Maryland with his wife and three children who are American citizens before he was deported on March Abrego Garcia s protected legal status prohibited him from being deported to El Salvador He was deported on one of three planes filled with alleged migrant gang members Garcia mentioned he and Frost sent a letter last week to House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer R-Ky requesting that an official delegation go to El Salvador to investigate Abrego Garcia s condition and push for his return but received no response Ansari reported more Democrats would be traveling to El Salvador in the coming days and weeks Those of us in the House who are here greatly admire and endorsement what Sen Van Hollen did Garcia revealed Of Abrego Garcia he stated His family knew that he was safe but he s not home and so we ve got to continue the pressure and we ve got to ensure that the rule of law in the United States is allowed Justice Department lawyers stated in court last week that they have no power to advance Abrego Garcia s return because he is in a foreign country s custody Administration agents also claimed in inhabitants comments that Abrego Garcia was engaged in human trafficking and terrorism and therefore correctly deported White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that if Abrego Garcia were to return to the U S he would forthwith be deported again Van Hollen unsuccessfully lobbied the Salvadoran cabinet for Abrego Garcia s return He reported NBC s Meet the Press on Sunday that the United States is facing a constitutional predicament if the Trump administration does not follow the Supreme Court s order to push to bring Abrego Garcia back It s a warning Democrats are increasingly amplifying Rather than debate President Donald Trump s hardline immigration agenda or the merits of the administration s invocation of national guard to carry out deportations Democratic lawmakers are zeroing in on the issue of due process with particular noting that the Supreme Court and lower court federal judges uncovered Abrego Garcia was deported without a proper hearing The establishment s argument moreover implies that it could deport and incarcerate any person including U S citizens without legal consequence so long as it does so before a court can intervene Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in the court s ruling in Abrego Garcia s affair Mentioned Garcia They re trying to demonize him and we re not here to defend him He deserves due process and everyone deserves due process What he did or may have done that has to be decided by a judge Republicans have been going too for a different reason Several House Republicans have visited El Salvador s Terrorism Confinement Center the prison where Abergo Garcia is being held and lauded the facility for what they view as El Salvador s tough-on-crime policies Republican senators and governors have defended Abrego Garcia s detention as part of a broader crackdown on illegal immigration But at least one Republican senator called the administration s deportation of Abrego Garcia a mistake The administration won t admit it But this was a screw-up mentioned Sen John Kennedy a Louisiana Republican on NBC s Meet the Press During a meeting with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office Trump remarked that homegrown lawbreakers should be deported to prisons in the Central American country and urged Bukele to build about five more places like the notorious penitentiary where Abrego Garcia is now held Congressional Republicans have so far shown little interest in negotiating the dispute between the president and the judiciary Democrats who are in the minority in both chambers of Congress have little leverage to pressure the White House But Abrego Garcia s scenario has become both an alarming and galvanizing development inside the party Democrats have the power to draw attention to this issue to keep the pressure up Ansari announced That s why you know several of us are going and so multiple members will be going Because this is about the future of our democracy and the future of due process as American citizens Source