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You’ve probably already heard about the fight between Donald Trump and federal Judge James Boasberg over the weekend. Boasberg blocked Trump from using the Alien Enemies Act to deport undocumented Venezuelans, who allegedly belong to a criminal gang, to El Salvador. Trump deported them anyway. Then, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele taunted the judge on X/Twitter when he unsuccessfully ordered the flights turned around. Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared the video Bukele posted, as did Elon Musk. And Trump thanked him, saying, “We will not forget!” Really classy stuff.
Do I think criminal gang members here illegally should be deported? Absolutely. Get them the hell out. But here is the issue: in America, we have a process for this. Why does that matter? Because shit happens. And with this administration, a lot of shit is happening. Green card holders, visa holders, tourists, even U.S. citizens are getting nabbed by ICE; detained for long stretches of time, often in undisclosed locations; subjected to harsh conditions; and deported without due process.
The men sent to do hard labor in a Salvadoran prison with no due process include a tattoo artist seeking asylum who entered legally, a teen who got a tattoo in Dallas because he thought it “looked cool,” and a 26-year-old whose tattoos his wife says are unrelated to a gang. Are they undocumented? Are they involved in gang activity? We have no idea. They never got to make their case. Next time, your son or nephew or friend’s kid could be disappeared because he posted a picture of his tattoo online. That’s not fearmongering. It’s just the sickening new reality we’re in where nothing matters anymore.