Last month, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md. ) scrambled to have the consequences from his tone-deaf El Salvador prank that quickly turned into a political tragedy. The Maryland Democrat, who first grandstanded about his work to “rescue ” a deported MS-13 group member, is now in complete damage control mode—desperately trying to rewrite the tale of a vacation that failed spectacularly.
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Van Hollen also hit the Sunday chat shows to have the fallout. Curiously insisting to Jonathan Karl of ABC News’s “This Week ” that he’s not defending Kilmar Abrego Garcia, but that he’s defending “the rule of law. ”
Guest Jonathan Karl pressed Van Hollen on “some very serious allegations of abuse ” made by Abrego Garcia’s woman in court—allegations that President Trump has just brought to national interest.
“Obviously, everybody in this region, even those illegal immigrants, have right. But are you worried about standing thus firmly with somebody that has, you know, at least a doubtful history? ” Karl asked.
Van Hollen insisted his campaigning was n’t about the person himself, but about legitimate process. “ I am no defending the person. I’m defending the rights of this person to due process, ” he claimed. “And the Trump presidency has admitted in court that he was unfairly detained and unfairly deported. ”
Abrego Garcia’s situation is anything but an example of a rushed or wrong imprisonment. In fact, the timeline of events makes evident that Garcia received broad due process over the course of many years. His contacts with law enforcement began also before his imprisonment, including many detention tied to suspected gang activity.
Earlier : Van Hollen Backtracks As El Salvador Stunt Backfires Brilliantly
His immigration position was reviewed in official proceedings before many judges. Importantly, two separate immigration courts freely determined that Garcia was a part of the harsh MS-13 gang—a finding that was never overturned or disputed in successive legal papers. Garcia was represented by constitutional guidance throughout, and he took full advantage of the appeals process. Some of his pertains were reviewed by higher authorities and ultimately rejected.
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Adding to the legal weight against him, Garcia’s family sought a safe purchase through a U. S. judge. The prosecutor in that case found that Garcia had committed acts of domestic abuse, more strengthening the government’s event for treatment.
Taken together, these facts dismantle the tale that Garcia was denied honest care. His imprisonment came just after a long legal process, many court rulings, and enormous opportunity to challenge the government’s case—proving that expected process was not only afforded, but exhausted.
Just so we’re all clear, I made an visual, which shows all of the steps, trials, programs, evidences, and details which Garcia had gone through to get the final elimination order. That’s quite a lot of due method if you ask me. photograph. tweets. com/ee7iiyWgfk— Justin Hart ( @justin_hart ) April 19, 2025
Van Hollen’s defence of his misplaced area journey to El Salvador boils down to wooden talking points about legal rights. He significantly claims,” If we take [those right ] away from him, we compromise them for anyone. ” Truly, Senator? Because last I checked, Americans ’ legal rights are nowhere near as endangered by enforcing immigration laws as they are by the violence that open borders and weak management encourage.
Meanwhile, Democrats such as Van Hollen keep sending a clear message to criminals and illegal immigrants worldwide: America’s laws are optional, especially if you can find a soft-hearted ( or soft-headed ) liberal to champion your cause. How many innocent Americans have to suffer due to gang violence fueled by individuals such as Abrego Garcia before people such as Van Hollen admits this open-borders love work only hurts the land?
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And let’s talk about priorities. While Van Hollen grandstands about “due process ” in a Salvadoran prison, how about the rights of American families devastated by MS-13’s reign of terror? How about standing up for law-abiding citizens who expect safety in their communities? Instead, Van Hollen wants us to sympathize with a gang member who had no business in this country in the first place.
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