...
By Nick Mordowanec
Staff Writer
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
White House Senior Director for Counterterrorism Sebastian Gorka implied in an interview that people who support bringing Kilmar Abrego Garcia back to the United States from El Salvador may be "aiding and abetting" criminals.
Why It Matters
Abrego Garcia, 29, a Salvadoran man from Maryland, was picked up by U.S. authorities on March 12 in Baltimore and deported. He has no criminal record and is not affiliated with gangs like MS-13, according to his family and attorneys.
Read More on U.S.
The Trump administration, in its pursuit to deport the most illegal migrants of any administration ever, said Abrego Garcia's wife and children "are safer" with him gone.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said he won't ever return to the United States, even though the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of his release.
What To Know
On Tuesday, Gorka said on Newsmax's Rob Schmitt Tonight that Abrego Garcia's deportation was necessary under a "three strikes" system because he's an "illegal" foreign national and gang member.
"I came up with this over a year ago when I had my show on Newsmax, and I realized that the taxonomy of politics in America is dead," Gorka said. "It's not left and right. It's not Republican or Democrat. There's a line that divides us. Do you love America, or do you hate America?
"And we have people who love America, like the president, like his cabinet, like the directors of his agencies who want to protect Americans. And then there is the other side that is on the side of the cartel members, the side of the illegal aliens, on the side of the terrorists."
Gorka added: "You have to ask yourself, are they technically aiding and abetting them? Because aiding and abetting criminals and terrorists is a crime in federal statute."
...
He went so far as to call Abrego Garcia a "terrorist," which mimics other messaging coming out of the White House this week.
Leavitt told reporters on Tuesday that "there is never going to be a world" where Abrego Garcia returns and lives in Maryland.
Abrego Garcia came to the U.S. illegally about 14 years ago. An immigration judge later ruled that he could stay in the U.S. due to gang violence in his native country, El Salvador. That ruling also granted Abrego Garcia a federal permit to work in the U.S., which he has used to work in construction.
He later married Jennifer Stefania Vasquez Sura and financially supported her, their son, and her two children from a previous relationship.
On Wednesday, Senator Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, said that his request to meet with Abrego Garcia in person was dismissed by El Salvador's Vice President Félix Ulloa. Van Hollen was unable to speak to Abrego Garcia by phone.
A GoFundMe to help Abrego Garcia and his family has exceeded $200,000.
What People Are Saying
El Salvador President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office on Monday: "How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States? Of course, I'm not going to do it. The question is preposterous."
Kilmar Abrego Garcia's wife, Jennifer Stefania Vasquez Sura: "Kilmar, if you can hear me, stay strong. God hasn't forgotten about you. Our children are asking, when will you come home? And I pray for the day I tell them the time and date that you will return."
Maryland Governor Wes Moore, a Democrat, on X on Wednesday: "The Supreme Court ordered this administration to facilitate Kilmar's release. Marylanders and people all across the nation are calling on the President to bring him home. Enough is enough."
What Happens Next
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis said she would order sworn testimony from Trump administration officials to determine if they had complied with her orders to facilitate Abrego Garcia's return. That includes daily status updates on the situation.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines