Kilmar Abrego Garcia Confirmed Alive by Democratic Senator
Senator Chris Van Hollen met with the man mistakenly deported to El Salvador by the Trump administration
Following concerns that Kilmar Abrego Garcia had either died or disappeared while being held at El Salvador’s brutal CECOT maximum-security prison, Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen thankfully confirmed his well-being on April 17.
Nevertheless, the Bukele administration is accused of arranging the visit under questionable circumstances. According to Van Hollen, officials handed them cups of coffee and large glasses of water in a hotel restaurant to give the impression that Abrego Garcia was well cared for. Initially, they were expected to meet outside next to a swimming pool for a more blatant photo op.
During his abduction, conversely, Abrego Garcia remembered being handcuffed, shackled, and shipped on a plane without having any idea of where he was going. Once arriving at CECOT, he remembers being taunted by prisoners while being held in a cell with 25 other people.
Abrego Garcia has since been moved to a separate facility with better conditions, yet the Trump administration still refuses to return him to the United States, defying court orders
Senator Chris Van Hollen Says He Is Defending Legal Due Process for All
As he faces growing criticism from conservatives for supporting a man the Trump administration accuses of being a violent gang member and career criminal, Chris Van Hollen maintains that he is only protecting everyone’s constitutional right to due process.
“I am not defending the man; I’m defending the rights of this man to due process,” the Maryland senator told reporters. “My mission and my purpose is to make sure that we uphold the rule of law, because if we take it away from him, we do jeopardize it for everybody else.”
Trump has since released tattoos of Abrego Garcia’s knuckles depicting marijuana, a smiley face, a cross, and a skull, which his administration insists is a secret code for “MS-13.” Apart from this vague association, they still haven’t produced any verifiable proof that he is an active member of any gang. As such, Senator Van Hollen and Abrego Garcia’s attorneys have proposed a solution to properly weigh the evidence presented against the migrant father: a fair trial.
“The idea that you can't defend people's rights under the Constitution and fight MS-13 and gang violence is a very dangerous idea,” Van Hollen added. “[The Trump administration] should put up or shut up in court, because the district court judge in this case said, and I quote, ‘They put no evidence linking Abrego Garcia to MS-13 or to any other terrorist activity.’”
JD Vance Met with Pope Francis Hours Before the Pontiff’s Passing
On Easter Sunday, U.S. Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic who converted to the religion in 2019, became one of the last public officials to visit Pope Francis before his death, speaking with the late pontiff to exchange holiday greetings.
Although the exact nature of their conversation was kept private, the Vatican reported an earlier “exchange of opinions” between JD Vance and the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, about migrants, refugees, and the global conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine.
Pope Francis, who is regarded as the most progressive head of the Catholic Church, was also a vocal opponent of Trump and Vance’s immigration policies. In February, he admonished their mass deportation plans and encouraged all Christians to respect migrants. “What is built on the basis of force, and not on the truth about the equal dignity of every human being, begins badly and will end badly,” he wrote.
The White House is Considering Replacing Pete Hegseth After Second Signal Leak
The Trump White House is reportedly taking steps to replace Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth following revelations that he was responsible for a second Signal leak concerning Houthi targets in Yemen.
In March, Hegseth disclosed sensitive war plans to a group of top officials using the private messaging app Signal, including Jeffrey Goldberg of the Atlantic, who was accidentally added to the conversation by Trump advisor Mike Waltz. Goldberg’s editorial detailing his front-row perspective revealed that Hegseth had shared classified information that could have placed U.S. service members in jeopardy had it been shared or publicized earlier.
More recently, it was reported that Hegseth shared the same information in a second group chat with his wife, brother, and attorney. Unlike the conversation held between the top members of Trump’s cabinet, there was no justifiable reason for the Secretary of Defense to share war plans with his immediate family.
Accordingly, Democrats on the Senate Armed Services Committee have called for his immediate resignation. “Hegseth should own up to his actions and accept the consequences for potentially putting our service members in harm’s way due to his negligence,” Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said in a statement.
“But we must not forget that ultimate responsibility here lies with President Trump for selecting a former weekend TV host, without any experience successfully leading a large and complex organization, to run our government’s biggest department and make life and death decisions for our military and country."