According to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, President Donald Trump is considering legal options regarding the deportation of American citizens to El Salvador.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Leavitt stated that Trump has “simply floated” the idea in the “effort of transparency.” Well at least they’re being transparent I suppose. The statement came after a reporter asked about what Trump had said over the weekend. The president claimed he would be willing to deport U.S. citizens to El Salvador with the cooperation of President Bukele.
Donald Trump’s deportation plan explained
Leavitt revealed that Trump had discussed the possibility numerous times both publicly and privately. She emphasized the fact that the president had specified “If there is a legal pathway to do that,” then he would be interested in pursuing it. However, at this stage it is only a possibility.
Of course, when have legal obstacles ever stopped Trump in the past? The fact this has to even be specified shows just how low public trust for Donald is. Any other president and it would be a given that they were operating within the bounds of the law. With Trump it’s another story.
Leavitt went on to further clarify that this would only apply to “heinous, violent criminals who have broken our nation’s laws repeatedly.”
Responding to Leavitt’s statement on X, many pointed out that it most certainly is illegal, no ifs or buts. One individual wrote, “You can’t deport American citizens. It is illegal, period.” Another expressed worries that the Supreme Court would find a way to make it happen for Trump, “Of course, Trump’s yes men and woman on the Supreme Court will find it acceptable.”
The issue with the plan
Aside from a whole list of human rights violations that would result from this policy, there are other issues to consider. In the last few weeks we’ve already seen the Trump administration erroneously deport two individuals to El Salvador and nobody’s done a thing to save either one of them.
One person on X pointed out, “they deported a non criminal and said it was a mistake. So American citizens might have mistakes too?” If the government doesn’t have a foolproof way to differentiate between real criminals and innocents then we could see even more innocent people being sent to “hell on earth.”
Given how inept the Trump administration has shown itself to be it’s no surprise that this news is concerning to many. Plus the stories about this confinement center in El Salvador paint a disturbing picture. Nobody deserves to be sent to such a terrible place, U.S. citizen or not.
Published: Apr 9, 2025 10:56 am