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He continued, “When this case landed on my desk, I asked my clients that very question. I have not received to date an answer that I find satisfactory.”
Desperate for more time, Reuveni begged the court for a 24-hour reprieve: “I would ask the court to give us, the defendants, one more chance to do this,” he pleaded. But even as the DOJ lawyer sought to cool tensions, the Trump team wasn’t backing down.
Deputy Press Secretary Harrison Fields released a blunt statement from Leavitt: “We suggest the Judge contact President @nayibbukele because we are unaware of the judge having jurisdiction or authority over the country of El Salvador.”
Earlier in the week, Leavitt had made the administration’s position crystal clear: “The administration maintains the position that this individual was deported to El Salvador and will not be returning to our country and was a member of the brutal and vicious MS-13 gang.”
Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin backed up the claim: “He’s actually a member of MS-13 and was involved in human trafficking … It is a gang that rapes, maims, and kills Americans for sport. They should not be on U.S. soil.”
Trump ally and White House deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller mocked the judge on social media, posting: “Marxist judge now thinks she’s president of El Salvador.”
Even El Salvador’s real president, Nayib Bukele, took a jab at Judge Xinis, reportedly ridiculing the ruling in his own social media post.
Despite all this, the human side of the story also drew attention. According to NBC Washington, Abrego Garcia was arrested by ICE on March 12 in College Park, Maryland, near an IKEA store. His wife, Jennifer, said he was just picking up their kids from the bus stop when agents detained him.
“When they put him in the vehicle, they still took me to the vehicle and opened the door and told me to say goodbye to him,” she said tearfully. “You’re going to come back, because you haven’t done nothing. You have your work permit.”
Abrego Garcia, who came to the U.S. in 2012, didn’t seek asylum until 2019—well after his legal options had narrowed. A judge rejected his asylum claim but blocked his deportation under a rule protecting individuals who face credible threats in their home country. He was released to live with his U.S. citizen wife and child in Maryland.
Just Released: Trump White House Collector’s Bobblehead!
His attorney, Lucia Curiel, said his deportation defied his “withholding of removal” status granted in 2019. However, ICE officials cited gang affiliation as justification for his removal. The suspect was allegedly identified by a confidential informant and spotted wearing gang-affiliated attire—though the claims remain disputed.
An ICE document claims he held a “prominent role in MS-13.” Another official labeled his deportation necessary due to “purported membership in MS-13.”
Now, as a federal judge demands answers and a return flight, the Trump administration remains unmoved—willing to risk legal wrath rather than bring an alleged MS-13 gang member back to U.S. soil.
