U.S. President Donald Trump meets with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele within the Oval Workplace on the White Home in Washington, April 14, 2025.
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters
The Trump administration advised a federal choose on Monday that it doesn’t have the authority to compel El Salvador to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia to america from a infamous jail regardless of a court docket order and the U.S. Supreme Court docket ruling saying that ought to occur.
That declare in a court docket submitting got here hours after El Salvador President Nayib Bukele advised reporters on the White Home that he wouldn’t voluntarily return Abrego Garcia.
The Maryland resident was forcibly deported to his native nation in March resulting from what the Trump administration has conceded was an administrative error.
Joseph Mazzara, appearing Basic Counsel on the Division of Homeland Safety, within the new submitting mentioned, “DHS has established processes for taking steps to take away home obstacles that may in any other case stop an alien from lawfully getting into america.”
“DHS doesn’t have authority to forcibly extract an alien from the home custody of a overseas sovereign nation,” Mazzara mentioned within the submitting in U.S. District Court docket in Maryland.
Mazzara, in the identical submitting to Choose Paula Xinis, famous Bukele’s statements about Abrego Garcia, which had been made throughout a gathering with President Donald Trump within the Oval Workplace.
“The query is preposterous,” Bukele mentioned when he was requested about sending Abrego Garcia again from the jail.
“How can I smuggle a terrorist into america?” Bukele mentioned. “I haven’t got the ability to return him to america.”
Prime Trump administration officers on the similar assembly advised they might not adjust to Xinis’ demand that officers facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return, regardless of the district and Supreme Court docket orders.
The Trump administration claims the married father of three is a gang member, pointing to a 2019 assertion by a U.S. immigration choose.
U.S. Reps. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., at left, and Juan Vargas, D-Calif., maintain footage of Kilmar Abrego Garcia throughout a information convention to debate Abrego Garcia’s arrest and deportation, on the Cannon Home Workplace Constructing in Washington, April 9, 2025.
Alex Wong | Getty Photos
The administration additionally argues it has no obligation to get him again
On Thursday, the Supreme Court docket upheld Xinis’ authentic order that the administration “facilitate” Abrego Garcia’s return however requested her to make clear it.
Xinis rapidly did so, and on Friday advised the Trump administration to present her every day updates on the standing of Abrego Garcia and about its efforts to get him again.
Bukele advised he wouldn’t ship Abrego Garcia to the U.S. even when Trump requested.
“I imply, we’re not very keen on releasing terrorists into our nation,” the Salvadoran president mentioned.
“We simply turned the homicide capital of the world into the most secure nation within the Western Hemisphere and also you need us to return into releasing criminals so we are able to return to being the homicide capital of the world?” Bukele mentioned.
“That is not going to occur.”
Trump then mentioned that the media would “love” to have criminals launched into the U.S., including that the media are “sick individuals.”
He additionally mentioned he desires Bukele to simply accept as many criminals as attainable.
After insulting the CNN reporter who requested about Abrego Garcia, Trump had tossed the query about his return to Lawyer Basic Pam Bondi.
Bondi mentioned Abrego Garcia — who has by no means been convicted of against the law within the U.S. — had been decided within the courts to be a member of the gang MS-13 who was within the nation illegally.
Xinis has mentioned there isn’t any proof that he’s a gang member.
“That is as much as El Salvador in the event that they wish to return him. That is lower than us,” Bondi mentioned.
She mentioned the Supreme Court docket’s ruling on Abrego Garcia solely requires that the Trump administration “facilitate” his return, “which means present a airplane,” if El Salvador decides to return him.
Trump then requested high White Home advisor Stephen Miller to weigh in.
“He is a citizen of El Salvador,” Miller mentioned. “So it’s totally smug, even, for American media to counsel that we might even inform El Salvador easy methods to deal with their very own residents.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio nodded alongside at Miller’s interpretation of the Supreme Court docket’s ruling.
After Bukele mentioned he wouldn’t launch Abrego Garcia, Rubio mentioned, “I do not perceive what the confusion is.”
“This particular person is a citizen of El Salvador,” Rubio mentioned. “He was illegally in america and was returned to his nation. That is the place you deport individuals again to their nation of origin.”
“The overseas coverage of america is performed by the President of america, not by a court docket,” Rubio mentioned. “And no court docket in america has a proper to conduct a overseas coverage in america, it is that easy. Finish of story.”
When the CNN reporter tried to ask Trump a follow-up query, the president replied, “How lengthy do we now have to reply this query from you?”
“Why do not you simply say: Is not it great that we’re maintaining criminals out of our nation?” Trump mentioned.
