President Donald Trump has intensified his administration’s contentious deportation policies by suggesting that violent American citizens convicted of crimes could be sent to prisons in El Salvador, a move that legal experts say would violate U.S. law and constitutional protections. The announcement came during a White House meeting with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, who has been a staunch ally in accepting deportees and hosting a notorious Salvadoran prison known as CECOT.
The controversy centers on the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego García, a Maryland resident who was mistakenly sent to El Salvador in March despite a U.S. court order to facilitate his return. The Trump administration initially refused to comply with the Supreme Court’s directive, with Attorney General Pam Bondi asserting that Abrego García was unlawfully in the U.S. due to alleged gang affiliations, a claim his legal team disputes. Bukele openly refused to return Abrego García, calling the idea “absurd” and likening it to smuggling a terrorist into the United States.
During the Oval Office meeting, Trump expressed support for the idea of deporting “violent offenders” who are U.S. citizens to El Salvador, stating that Attorney General Bondi was reviewing the legal framework for such actions. He described these individuals as “troublemakers” and “really bad people,” suggesting that sending them to El Salvador’s prisons could be “beneficial.” However, U.S. law prohibits the deportation of citizens, and experts warn that forcibly sending Americans abroad would violate constitutional rights, including protections against cruel and unusual punishment.
Human Rights Watch and other organizations have condemned El Salvador’s prison conditions, citing reports of torture, incommunicado detention, and severe due process violations. The Trump administration has paid El Salvador $6 million to house migrants in CECOT, where over 200 individuals accused of gang ties have been detained, many without criminal records.
The use of the Alien Enemies Act, a little-known wartime statute, has been invoked to deport migrants labeled as gang members, but its application to U.S. citizens remains legally dubious. Critics argue that the administration’s broad and often unsubstantiated claims of gang affiliation have led to wrongful deportations and violations of due process.
The escalating dispute highlights Trump’s broader strategy of expanding executive power over immigration and criminal justice, often at odds with judicial rulings and civil liberties. It also underscores the close cooperation between Trump and Bukele, who has been criticized internationally for authoritarian tactics in his crackdown on gangs.
The situation has drawn sharp criticism from immigration advocates, legal scholars, and lawmakers who warn that these policies undermine the rule of law and threaten fundamental rights. As the legal battles continue, the fate of deportees like Abrego García remains uncertain, and the prospect of deporting American citizens abroad raises profound constitutional and human rights concerns.
