White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Tuesday that President Donald Trump is exploring legal pathways to “deport” U.S. citizens to El Salvador, where the administration has already arranged to house deported immigrants in a prison known for its human rights abuses. (Watch the video, above.)
Leavitt suggested the effort would be limited to people who have committed major crimes, but Trump has also mentioned the possibility of sending people who commit lesser offenses abroad.
Any such move on the part of the Trump administration is certain to be challenged in court. It is also not clear what legal authority could be used to justify expelling U.S. citizens from their homeland.
“These would be heinous, violent criminals who have broken our nation’s laws repeatedly. These are violent, repeat offenders on American streets,” Leavitt told reporters at a press briefing.
“The president has said if it’s legal, right, if there is a legal pathway to do that. He’s not sure, [and] we are not sure if there is,” Leavitt continued. “It’s an idea that he has simply floated and has discussed very publicly in the effort of transparency.”
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday that he “love[s]” the idea of removing U.S. citizens, adding that it would be an “honor” to send them to El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele — an eager partner in Trump’s schemes.
Trump also proposed the idea in March, when Tesla vehicles were being vandalized and set ablaze in protest of CEO Elon Musk’s heavy-handed involvement in the Trump administration. Musk has been running the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, taking credit for huge cuts to the federal workforce and federal services.
“I look forward to watching the sick terrorist thugs get 20 year jail sentences for what they are doing to Elon Musk and Tesla,” Trump wrote. “Perhaps they could serve them in the prisons of El Salvador, which have become so recently famous for such lovely conditions!”
The administration has argued that housing people in El Salvador saves taxpayer money.
Several planeloads of immigrants flown there last month remain incarcerated as a lawsuit challenging their deportation proceeds through the federal court system. The immigrants, mostly men from Venezuela, were accused of being gang members and deported without the chance to defend themselves. Court documents and reports that have emerged since their removal suggest many believe they will be targeted by the very same gangs Trump has accused them of being affiliated with.
Trump used the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to send the immigrants to El Salvador, officially categorizing the gang Tren de Aragua as a hostile power and the immigrants of being members. It is not clear whether he would attempt to use the same law or a different power to remove citizens.
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Critics say the administration’s policy is a clear violation of due process protections enshrined in the Constitution.
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