Americans of Reddit, what are your thoughts on Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen traveling to El Salvador to advocate for Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s release?
Americans of Reddit, what are your thoughts on Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen traveling to El Salvador to advocate for Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s release?
Comments
If Chris Van Hollen never returns to the US I would not be surprised
It’s a time honored tradition going back to our founding fathers. If he’s good enough for it to work, I’d support him for Secretary of State next election.
He should make a stop in Panama, just so people could say “I watched Van Hollen’s Panama video today.”
Honestly, I doubt he will succeed. The leader of El Salvador has no requirement to listen to a foreign leader and was paid by Trump to take these people.
I fully applaud and support him in this endeavor, but I’ll be honest, my first thought when it was announced was of Congressman Leo Ryan and his fate in Guyana in ‘78. There are similarities.
Someone needs to step up and try! Praying he returns safely with Kilmer
At least his senator gives a good goddamn. Odds are long that he succeeds, but it’s worth a try.
A true patriot. This is what leaders do. They don’t shrivel and hide. They lead.
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I don’t care if this is a publicity stunt or not. At least they are doing something.
Someone has to do something.
I think he’s going to be killed. El Salvador will tell us MS13 did it. Maybe MS13 will do it. But they will do it at the behest of their government.
It’s all a shitty game played by an established dictator and an up-and-coming dictator, and it’s costing (or gonna cost) lives.
He is a rock’n’roller. ✊🏽
I think this guy may be risking his life.
waste if time
Good for him.
performative bullshit.
Every single Democrat should be going with
I support the gesture but not too hopeful
Dementia don said no and the cult loves the cruelty so they don’t care
Its a shame that it takes all of this, to get one of our own back. Abandoned by the upper echelons of our government and failed miserably at that.
The military should grow a spine and step in
Good luck to him.
Wish him luck but don’t think it’s gonna happen.
Why not pay attention to your own constituents instead of grandstanding on some sort of a liberal Don quixote-esque mission?
Abrego Garcia has not been accused of killing anyone.
My opinion is that it is wrong….political stunt.
I’m nervous as hell for him because this admin is proving that they are capable of getting away with just about anything and they might be emboldened right now to do something to him.
But, I am somewhat relieved that someone is willing to do this and hoping that more dems make the trip in the near future. Something needs to be done.
He is a hero, standing up for what is right. He is taking an enormous risk and should be supported and applauded.
All for show. Nobody except politicians care about this guy. Why can’t Democrats find the right hill to die on. Defending MS13 members? Supporting men playing women’s sports? Really so stupid.
Start talking about climate change and ways to fix the economy then the independent voters will support.
Be interested to see if he comes back
Think he has the right idea and is brave to go and make the request. When he comes back watch the DOJ charge him with violating the Hatch Act! Never abandon citizens or legal residents, what good are you as a country if you don’t respect the rights of the people?!
I honestly hope he’s successful. Watching him bring Garcia back only to be immediately deported and him arrested for smuggling an illegal immigrant in would be so fucking funny
My first thought? “I hope the Senator comes back”.
It reminds me of what happened during another infamous visit to Jim Jones’ compound. Hope history doesn’t repeat itself.
I’m wondering if the government of El Salvador will let him leave. trump won’t care if they arrest him on some fake charge and through him in the jail. Nobody in maga will care either.
Reminds me of the Jonestown story
Since the Trump administration has so loosely defined foreign policy, I fully expect Bondi to move to arrest him upon his return for treading into an area they have repeatedly said is solely the president’s purview.
Good.
I don’t know what all power he has down there, but someone needs to be there.
Chris Van Hollen standing up for Kilmar Abrego Garcia shows real leadership. When a U.S. resident is wrongly deported despite court protection, it’s right for our reps to step in. Due process matters—no one should be left behind because of government mistakes.
I wish him success, but I’m not sure how he will locate or assist Garcia.
I’m all for it. I hope he comes back. They are all pretty emboldened right now.
American but live overseas for the last 20 years.
If he comes home, he will come home alone. I emphasis ‘If’, because I doubt Trump will allow him to leave the prison once he goes in for an inspection.
Either way, I have very little hope this will end well for anyone
It should never have gotten this far
He’s an idiot. It’s all a shoe for a guy who was illegally in out country and contrary to reddit, it will lose the Democrats even more with mainstream voters.
He entered our country illegally No one gives a shit about this man, and the Democrats by their very actions in this in this case are telling us that they want the Republicans to stay in control forever. Liberals have lost the goddamn script they’ve become unhinged they don’t give a fuck about us God forbid they care about real Americans more than they do some illegal that come in our country. What the fuck happened to my reproductive rights Democrats? You sure as fuck didn’t care to keep those safe but by God you’ll go to El Salvador for some illegal get out of here with this shit.
I think he’ll be lucky to return to the U.S. the way things are looking.
Nice to see Sen. Van Hollen advocating for the rights of the criminals while totally ignoring the victims.
Also, Garcia is a citizen of El Salvador and is in El Salvador. The President of El Salvador said he would not send him back to the US because Garcia is a member of MS13. This is grandstanding 101. I wonder how much this costs the tax payers.
He’ll be turned away at the prison gates, if not right at the airport.
But I applaud him for trying, and for bring attention to the matter.
At least he is standing up and trying to do the right thing. We need more of these kind of (key word) Actions.
Regardless of whether or not the man is actually guilty of any of the charges levelled against him, he deserves due process. If the administration isn’t going to do anything to get him back, someone else needs to.
He should remind the caudillo that Trump won’t be president forever and America has a long history of overthrowing Latin American dictators that pissed us off.
I think he won’t get into the prison because he is t there
In our current time, it seems like a brave thing to do that obviously almost all politicians don’t have the courage to do.
God bless him.
At least someone is trying SOMETHING, not just repeating the line that Dems have their hands tied.
As a Marylander, I appreciate and expect Maryland representatives to advocate for Marylanders
I support him and encourage other politicians to join him, both to show unity and for safety
Someone should. It is ridiculous that ICE can wrongly deport a guy, admit in open court that they wrongly deported the guy and then refuse to bring him back in defiance of a judge’s orders. This is beyond insane at this point. Someone ought to organize a commando team or something.
All I can think about is Jim Jones, Leo Ryan, and Guyana. I hope he takes precautions.
As a North Carolina resident who has no intention of ever living in Maryland, I donated $50 to his campaign this morning
He can go, and try. But reality is the El Salvador government is not going to release this criminal into the hands of a Senator.
It shouldn’t be necessary
I applaud him for it, but I don’t know what he can actually do.
A waste of time and money.
Shameless pandering.
Release him to where? He’s an illegal immigrant in his home country.
Trump could (and will) literally arrest him if he were to come back, and deport him to El Salvador, rendering this entire virtue signing charade pointless.
I think more should do it, and it sounds like there will be more.
Kilmar is not the only one wrongly sent to El Salvador, but he’s become a symbol and hopefully this starts something.
Let’s hope the man is allowed to return to us
I’m very proud of him.
It’s a cool PR stunt that means nothing.
…they’re doing it on the government dime, aren’t they?
Feels a lot like Leo Ryan visiting Jonestown in 1978. Godspeed Senator Van Hollen.
I think you’re karma farming.
He’s a gd HERO! I’m so proud of my Senator!!
I think it’s a good thing he’s calling more attention to it. By itself I don’t think it will accomplish much, but hopefully it’s just added pressure on the administration
An exercise in futility
That’s my senator!
Sombody needs to since the orange shit gibbon and his nazi disciples won’t do anything
Fucking glad someone is doing something!!
I wonder if he will dress in all white and take pictures by a fence…
I totally support Senator Van Hollen – he’s actually standing up for America and American citizens, against fascist tyranny.
Evidently Van Hollen was denied access to the prison (even though magats could enter and take pictures). I believe that’s proof that Mr Garcia has passed from this world and they are covering it up.
I support it. Garcia doesn’t deserve to be there. This whole thing is a ridiculous miscarriage of justice. And the reason for it is either A) the people behind it are so pathologically egotistical they’d rather a man rot in prison than own up to having made a mistake, or B) they’re just racist garbage trying to expel hispanic people from the country by whatever means necessary. Maybe it’s both.
Point is, the guy was not charged with a crime. Was not given a fair trial. And is being imprisoned in a manner that is unconstitutional by any measure. No one who claims to hold American values can also claim this is justice at the same time.
And if you think it can’t happen to you, all I have to say is…so did the fools in 1930s Germany that ended up in a furnace. The Nazi purge of the jews and other non-arian groups also started out as “we’re going to expel them because they’re ruining our country”. It wasn’t until later that it turned into “we’re going to mass murder them because turns out that’s easier than mass deportation.”
Go Senator!! I hope you can bring that innocent man back to his family!
This is what real patriotism looks like. An attempt, however risky, to correct an obvious injustice.
Every single republican is a disgrace to the American flag, the American people, and the forefathers of this country; as evidenced by their complacency as Trump shreds the Constitution day after day. I would rather they wear their trashy Trump flags and their North Korea style Trump pins than further defile the American flag with their filth.
I think that’s awesome. I don’t think it will do any good. I hope he makes it back.
I think we got our answer since they wouldn’t even let him confirm he is alive. I am wondering if the people being shipped are immediately disposed of to ensure no one advocates for them.
I just want to see if he’s alive.
It speak to his good character that he make the effort. He shouldn’t have to, because our laws forbid this bullshit. But our baby in the Whitehouse can’t be bothered by laws.
Abrego Garcia’s guilt or innocence is really beside the point.
In the USA you can’t disappear a person to a foreign gulag absent due process of law.
And you certainly can’t just blow off a SCOTUS decision/ruling to report back on the person’s situation and as directed work for his return.
IDK if he is MS13 or whatever but that fact set must be adjudicated in front of the proper authority and the accused should have legal representation.
No one knows what the facts are because the facts have not been examined in the proper forum.
Not American but I hope it’s more than a photo op. If he actually comes up with some useful information, he’s doing a good job. If he just comes back with a shrug and, “I tried,” it’s not going to land well.
I not only applaud him, I wish he would have traveled with an elite squad of people with very special skills to extract Abrego Garcia from the death camp.
He is my new favorite politician.
As a Marylander, I’m proud of what he’s doing. This is exactly what our elected representatives should be doing for residents of their state, regardless of immigration or citizenship status.
All he’s doing is what the supreme court has already ordered the Trump administration to do, so I don’t know why anyone would find this controversial.
The fact republicans are actually upset someone is trying to return a wrongly deported man from a foreign prison shows just how far the party has fallen. Disgusting people voting for disgusting politicians.
He’s not going to be able to get him back to the U.S. He might be able to get him out of prison and sent somewhere else where he has a chance of reuniting with his family…. If the guy is still alive.
Hes trying to do the right thing but he’s been denied visitation and I fear Abrego Garcia is already dead.
As a Maryland resident I support it 100%. Someone needs to fight this illegal bullshit Trump is pulling
As a Marylander, I’m impressed by his bravery, even if the government there told him to piss off.
Never heard of him.
I thought I grew up in a country that would rip your country apart to save one American. At least that’s what they told us, now we’re wondering if any of us are safe. I’m a straight white American male who works on a farm. Once they’re done with everyone else, don’t tell them I’m an atheist.
Great, specially since we found out now that he has no record and he’s only being held there because Trump paid El Salvador to keep him
Dumb political stunt that will hurt the dems overall.
He didn’t travel one time to Gaza, where dozens of actual innocent Americans were held against their will, but he goes to El Salvador on behalf of an El Salvador citizen. Let me ask you what you call that.?
Like everything Van Hollen does it’s performative and essentially a media attention grab. But if he wants to go good for him
I think the people responsible for putting him in custody, putting him on that plane and refusing to follow both court orders to return him to the usa belong in prison.
I think Congress has been far too complicit in all of this. I’m grateful for Van Hollen taking substantive action, and wish more members of our federal government were upholding their oath to protect the constitution, not helping a rogue executive to undermine it.
Keeping him in the news is a good thing. Protest this Saturday!
It’s about damn time someone in government took decisive action. Apparently there is at least one congressman who still has a spine and I applaud him! Anyone who allows this level of trampling on the constitution is a fucking unpatriotic traitor.
At least someone has the guts to try to do something. IDGAF if he did something he shouldn’t. This is a disgusting affront to the constitution we are supposed to abide by. Every, single American should be apoplectic about this.
It is a commendable effort!
At least someone is doing something.
I thought that Trump was just plain Dumb
But now I see he is Evil
Yes a Christian Candidate
Senator Chris Van Hollen did the right thing, Now it’s up to America to Speak
I would love to put Trump, Bondi, the lot in Garcia’s shoes for 48 hours. This is the hate administration.
I don’t understand why 20 more Senators didn’t go with him??? Why didn’t he take an army of congressional colleagues down there? I’m sure he would have liked more support.
The dude has my support. That’s what real men and leaders do. Lead by example. Something Trump has never done and will never do.
Ngl. I’m not expecting either of them to come home.
Assuming the plane can even get off the ground with those massive balls he’s carrying around. We need more people like him in leadership.
As an American he’s doing his due diligence and his job to protect the citizens of the United States and our rights as set forth in our constitution
As a Marylander I’m proud of his efforts. As an American I’m ashamed this has happened.