Tag: illegal immigration

SCOTUS Showdown: Justice Alito Issues Scathing Rebuke of Politically Motivated Order Blocking Trump from Deporting Foreign Terrorists Under Alien Enemies Act

In a blistering dissent, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, joined by Justice Clarence Thomas, has called out the reckless and legally dubious move by the Court’s liberal majority to block President Donald Trump’s lawful efforts to deport dangerous foreign nationals under the Alien Enemies Act.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a late-night, unsigned emergency order blocking President Donald Trump from deporting foreign nationals tied to the violent Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang, who are being held at the Bluebonnet Detention Center in Texas under the centuries-old Alien Enemies Act.

According to the order:

“There is before the Court an application on behalf of a putative class of detainees seeking an injunction against their removal under the Alien Enemies Act. The matter is currently pending before the Fifth Circuit. Upon action by the Fifth Circuit, the Solicitor General is invited to file a response to the application before this Court as soon as possible.

The Government is directed not to remove any member of the putative class of detainees from the United States until further order of this Court. See 28 U. S. C. §1651(a). Justice Thomas and Justice Alito dissent from the Court’s order. Statement from Justice Alito to follow.”

The ruling came in response to a hastily filed emergency appeal from the ACLU on behalf of a “putative class” of noncitizen detainees.

According to ACLU, “Plaintiffs learned that the government has begun giving notices of removal to class members, in English only, which do not say how much time individuals have to contest their removal or even how to do so… And officers last night told class members that they will be removed within 24 hours, which expires as early as this afternoon. Upon information and belief, individuals have already been loaded on to buses.”

In a fiery dissent joined by Justice Clarence Thomas, Alito took direct aim at the Court’s liberal majority, blasting their eleventh-hour injunction as legally questionable and procedurally incoherent.

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Chris Van Hollen’s El Salvador Visit May Violate the Logan Act — and Trigger Criminal Charges

Senator Chris Van Hollen’s sudden trip to El Salvador to try to free deportee Kilmar Abrego Garcia may have been illegal.

Van Hollen traveled to the Central American nation on Thursday to meet with Abrego Garcia and lobby for his return to the United Statesm despite the fact that he is not a citizen.

Legal experts and conservative commentators are increasingly arguing Maryland Democrat may have violated The Logan Act, which prohibits unauthorized diplomacy with foreign nations.

The 1799 statute, named after Pennsylvania Senator George Logan, bans communication with foreign officials “with intent to influence the[ir] measures … in relation to any disputes or controversies with the United States, or to defeat the measures of the United States.”

The Logan Act was previously weaponized by Democrats to harass President Trump’s former National Security advisor Michael Flynn.

While punishment involves a fine or imprisonement of up to three years, nobody has ever been convicted under the act, which is largely seen as symbolic.

The American Accountability Foundation sent a letter to Senate leadership on Thursday highlighting the Trump administration’s evidence that Kilmar Abrego Garcia has connections to the violent transnational gang MS-13, which is designated as a foreign terrorist organization.

“Mr. Abrego-Garcia is essentially an enemy combatant in the ongoing invasion of the United States by transnational gangs,” AAF President Thomas Jones wrote to the heads of the Senate Ethics Committee and Majority Leader John Thune, in a letter obtained by The New York Post.

“Despite the overwhelming evidence, Senator Van Hollen decided that he would use Senate funds to fly to El Salvador and advocate for an enemy of the United States,” the letter said.

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ANOTHER ONE: Oregon Democrat Rep. Heads to El Salvador to Demand Release of MS-13 Terrorist Kilmar Garcia

Rep. Maxine Dexter (D-Ore.) has announced she will travel to El Salvador to personally demand the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia — a deported illegal alien with alleged ties to the recently designated terrorist organization MS-13.

This is yet another example of Democrats prioritizing criminals over law-abiding Americans.

Dexter’s press release on Friday, dripping with sanctimonious outrage, claims Garcia’s deportation is a “constitutional crisis” and a “government-funded kidnapping.” She wails that Garcia, a so-called “legal U.S. resident,” had his “due process rights ripped away” and is now languishing in a Salvadoran prison.

But let’s cut through the leftist spin: Garcia was deported in March after the Trump administration identified him as a suspected MS-13 member, a designation backed by a 2019 Maryland police report and a Department of Homeland Security investigation that flagged him for potential human trafficking in 2022.

Court documents reveal Garcia was stopped in Tennessee with eight people crammed in his car, all suspiciously claiming the same address and carrying no luggage.

He played dumb with officers, pretending he couldn’t speak English. And then there’s the 2021 protective order filed by his own wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, who accused him of physical abuse and documented bruises he allegedly inflicted. This is the “family man” Dexter is championing?

President Trump himself has highlighted photos of Garcia’s knuckles, reportedly sporting MS-13 tattoos, though Democrats cry “Photoshop” to dodge the truth.

“Congresswoman Maxine Dexter, M.D. (OR-03) announced that she will travel to El Salvador to demand the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia,” according to the press release.

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Van Hollen Backtracks As El Salvador Stunt Backfires Spectacularly

Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) is frantically backpedaling after his ill-conceived El Salvador publicity stunt blew up in his face. The Maryland Democrat, who initially trumpeted his mission to “rescue” a deported MS-13 gang member, is now desperately trying to rewrite the script of his adventure gone wrong.

When Van Hollen first landed in the country, he couldn’t wait to broadcast his virtuous mission to the world. “I just landed in San Salvador,” he proclaimed proudly, promising to secure the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, whom he claimed was “illegally abducted.” 

Fast forward a few days, and suddenly the senator’s bold crusade has morphed into a classic attempt to backpedal. While Van Hollen was making a fool of himself, the Trump administration revealed the evidence that Abrego Garcia is, in fact an MS-13 gang member, but also that he reportedly engaged in human trafficking and domestic abuse.

Suddenly, this photo-op to own Trump and his immigration policies became an epic self-own, and Van Hollen’s tone has shifted dramatically, evening accusing El Salvador president Bukele of setting him up.

“I just want to take a moment—I hadn’t planned to do this,” Van Hollen said during a hastily arranged press availability. “But as I was landing on the airplane, I got a transcript of some questions President Trump was asked at the White House today about what I would call ‘Margaritagate.’ I don’t know if you guys have been following this…”

Van Hollen tried to explain away the photo as a staged deception. “When I first sat down with Kilmar, we just had glasses of water on the table, I think maybe some coffee,” he insisted. “And as we were talking, one of the government people came over and deposited two other glasses on the table with ice and I don’t know if it was salt or sugar around the top. But they looked like margaritas.”

He also accused the Salvadoran government of manipulating the scene to make it appear as though he and the deported gang member were drinking together. “If you look at the one they put in front of Kilmar, it actually had a little less liquid than the one in front of me, to try to make it look, I assume, like he drank out of it,” Van Hollen said. “Let me just be very clear. Neither of us touched the drinks that were in front of us.”

And then he kept digging himself into a hole.

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New Mexico Judge Abruptly Resigns After Suspected Tren de Aragua Gangbanger Arrested for Firearm Possession at His Home

A Doña Ana County magistrate judge has abruptly stepped down after an alleged Tren de Aragua gang affiliate who is in the U.S. illegally was reportedly arrested at his home and charged with possession of a firearm or ammunition.

Judge Jose “Joel” Cano reportedly submitted a letter of resignation on Mar. 3 of this year.

Judge Cano, a former police officer who took the bench in 2011, told a Border Hawk source that he did indeed resign but did not comment further.

Border Hawk contacted the judge’s office on Apr. 1 and was told by a clerk that he had “retired.”

On Feb. 28, 2025, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) El Paso arrested Cristhian Ortega-Lopez at a Las Cruces residence owned by Judge Cano following an anonymous tip.

Ortega-Lopez was reportedly caught by U.S. Border Patrol on Dec. 15, 2023, at Eagle Pass, TX, after illegally entering the U.S. by scaling a barbed wire fence, but was released three days later due to overcrowding at holding facilities.

Ortega-Lopez is a Venezuelan national and authorities believe he has ties to Tren de Aragua, based on tattoos, apparel, and displaying of hand gestures.

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House Oversight Chair James Comer Denies Democrats Taxpayer Funds to Visit MS-13 Gang Member in El Salvador: ‘Spend Your Own Money’

House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer slammed Democrats for requesting taxpayer-funded travel to El Salvador to visit a deported illegal alien with alleged ties to the MS-13 gang.

In a letter shared on X, Comer informed Democratic Reps. Robert Garcia of California and Maxwell Alejandro Frost of Florida that if they wish to meet with Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia in El Salvador, they’ll have to pay for the trip themselves.

He wrote:

It is absurd that you both displayed active hostility for over two years toward the Committee’s oversight of the Biden Border Crisis and the consequences of millions of illegal aliens entering the country, yet now, you are seeking travel at Committee expense to meet with foreign gang members.

You may be pleased to know that a Democrat Senator, Chris Van Hollen, was photographed just yesterday in El Salvador enjoying margaritas garnished with cherry slices with the foreign gang member your letter references.

If you also wish to meet with him, you can spend your own money. But I will not approve a single dime of taxpayer funds for use on the excursion you have requested.

The request came less than 24 hours after Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen traveled to El Salvador to meet with Abrego Garcia and lobby for his return to the United States.

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Supreme Court blocks, for now, new deportations under 18th century wartime law

The Supreme Court on Saturday blocked, for now, the deportations of any Venezuelans held in northern Texas under an 18th century wartime law.

In a brief order, the court directed the Trump administration not to remove Venezuelans held in the Bluebonnet Detention Center “until further order of this court.”

Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito dissented.

The high court acted in an emergency appeal from the American Civil Liberties Union contending that immigration authorities appeared to be moving to restart removals under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. The Supreme Court had said earlier in April that deportations could proceed only if those about to be removed had a chance to argue their case in court and were given “a reasonable time” to contest their pending removals.

“We are deeply relieved that the Court has temporarily blocked the removals. These individuals were in imminent danger of spending the rest of their lives in a brutal Salvadoran prison without ever having had any due process,” ACLU lawyer Lee Gelernt said in an email.

On Friday, two federal judges refused to step in as lawyers for the men launched a desperate legal campaign to prevent their deportation, even as one judge said the case raised legitimate concerns. Early Saturday, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals also refused to issue an order protecting the detainees from being deported.

The administration is expected to return to the Supreme Court quickly in an effort to persuade the justices to lift their temporary order.

The ACLU had already sued to block deportations of two Venezuelans held in the Bluebonnet facility and sought an order barring removals of any immigrants in the region under the Alien Enemies Act.

In an emergency filing early Friday, the ACLU warned that immigration authorities were accusing other Venezuelan men held there of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang, which would make them subject to President Donald Trump’s use of the act.

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Kilmar Abrego Garcia: The Soros connection

A first-pass run at the life and times of the left’s latest version of George Floyd, repatriated illegal alien Kilmar Abrego Garcia, flown to his native El Salvador and imprisoned as an MS-13 gang member, leaves one marveling at how the radical left sure knows how to pick ’em.

After all, the guy is a composite of every detested stereotypes about migrants — illegal border crosser, ignored his final deportation order, identified in police reports as an MS-13 gang member accepted by two judges, crazy high-speed driver endangering others, suspected human trafficker, (with a mysterious dropping of those charges by the Biden DoJ), multiple incident wife-beater whose wife told cops in a handwritten report that he kicked, punched, bruised, ripped the shirt and shorts off of, and sent her fleeing from their house; the wife taking an Uber to get away from him, writing that she was terrified to be around him. She also said she had documentary evidence of his brutality…

How do they pick such poster boys — boost them up as noble worker-saints just minding their own business only to be persecuted by President Trump, then rally the media to repeat the ridiculous narrative, until of course, it falls apart with the police records? After all, there were quite a few they could have chosen from to make their next hero — the Venezuelan gay “hairdresser,” the soccer player who was said to have been beaten up by the Maduro regime, several others. How did they pick Abrego-Garcia for congressional delegations to San Salvador, extensive media coverage, and all that?

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Human Trafficking Too? Biden Admin Flagged Deported El Salvadoran As ‘Suspect Alien’

As Democrats work themselves into hysterics over Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a now-deported El Salvadoran man (aka, ‘Maryland Man’) at the center of an intense court battle, several new details about ‘St. Abrego’ have surfaced in the last several days – most recently that the Biden administration flagged him as a ‘suspect alien’ who was potentially involved in “human smuggling/trafficking” following a traffic stop hundreds of miles away from his Maryland home, according to DHS records reviewed by Just the News.

And while it should come as no surprise that the Biden administration did not follow up (or at least the records don’t indicate whether they did), here’s what we know:

Abrego Garcia was pulled over in November 2022 by a Tennessee state trooper for driving an SUV full of people erratically and speeding.

“Subject was observed speeding and unable to maintain its lane, and was subsequently pulled over,” reads one entry. “Encountering officer decided not to cite the subject for driving infractions but gave him a warning citation for driving with an expired driver’s license,” the memo continues. Of note, Maryland issues driver’s licenses to illegal aliens.

According to the report, the trooper believed human trafficking was involved according to a DHS summary recorded on Dec. 6, 2022. 

“During the interview, subject pretended to speak less English than he was capable of and attempted to put encountering officer off-track by responding to questions with questions,” reads the summary. “When asked what relationship he had with the registered owner of the vehicle, subject replied the owner of the vehicle is his boss, and that his work is in construction.”

“There was no luggage in the vehicle, leading the encountering officer to suspect this was a human trafficking incident,” the report continues.

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Attorney General Releases Police Records Detailing Abrego Garcia’s Criminal History

On Wednesday, Attorney General Pam Bondi released police records showing Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, the “Maryland man” who was deported to his native El Salvador by the Trump administration, was in fact a member of MS-13 and was in the United States illegally.

Contrary to the assertions of Garcia’s lawyers (and many in the corporate press) that there’s no evidence he’s a member of MS-13 and that the cops just made it all up, the police affidavit from Garcia’s arrest in March 2019 shows that Garcia was arrested with multiple other confirmed MS-13 gang members, was wearing clothing associated with the gang, and was identified by a confidential police informant as a confirmed MS-13 gang member with a rank and a moniker.

Here’s what the police record said. Garcia and three other men were arrested outside a Home Depot by Hyattsville City Police in Maryland, and as police approached them, “two of the individuals reached into their waistbands and discarded several unknown items under a parked vehicle,” according to the affidavit. One of the men, Christhyan Hernandez-Romero, was immediately recognized by police as a member of the MS-13 Sailors Clique. Hernandez-Romero, police said, “has an extensive criminal history for multiple assault, concealing dangerous weapon, burglary and many other offenses.” They even knew his rank and moniker, which was “Bimbo.”

Another of the men, Jose Guillermo Dominguez, was covered in MS-13 gang tattoos and was identified by “a past proven and reliable source” as an active MS-13 gang member with the rank of “Chequeo” and the moniker “Maniaco.”

As for Garcia, police recognized his clothing as “indicative of Hispanic gang culture,” and that he was a “member in good standing with the MS-13.” The same confidential informant told police that Garcia had the rank of “Chequeo” and the moniker “Chele.” In addition, the arrest record shows that Garcia was by his own admission an illegal alien from El Salvador who had entered the U.S. by walking across the border near McAllen, Texas, in March 2012. At the time of his arrest in Maryland while loitering outside a Home Depot, he had $1,178 in cash on him. Several plastic bottles containing marijuana were also found near the men after their arrest. 

The fourth man was released after police were unable to determine his gang affiliation, which calls into serious question the claim by Garcia’s lawyers that the cops were just making up his affiliation with MS-13. If so, why didn’t they do so with this fourth man?

This police record is likely what multiple immigration judges, as well as the Board of Immigration Appeals, relied on when finding that “the evidence shows that he [Garcia] is a verified member of MS-13.”

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