Senator Van Hollen travels to El Salvador to fight for Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s return

He’s Still in That Cell

Hey Small Biters,

​A U.S. senator just flew to El Salvador for one man.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident, father, mental health counselor, and legally protected asylum seeker, was wrongly deported by the Trump administration last month. A court ordered his return. The administration refused.

Now, Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland is trying something new: diplomacy, face to face.

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Van Hollen traveled to San Salvador this week, meeting with senior Salvadoran officials and directly advocating for Garcia’s release and repatriation. He described his detention in El Salvador's notorious CECOT prison as “a grave injustice” and warned that the U.S. must not allow political priorities to override constitutional and humanitarian obligations.

Garcia, who has lived in the U.S. since 2011, was swept up in Trump’s expanded deportation campaign — despite holding a legal asylum status and having an active claim pending. ICE admitted it was a mistake. A federal judge agreed. So did the U.S. Supreme Court.

But Trump said no.

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