Trump has until midnight to rescue innocent father from nightmare prison, is he even lifting a finger?

The case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an innocent Maryland father who was snatched from his home by ICE agents, flown to El Salvador, and imprisoned in the hellish and notorious “Terrorism Confinement Center” has become a genuine controversy for the Trump administration.

Garcia’s plight first came to national attention when Trump’s lawyers admitted his removal was an “administrative error” but explained that now that he’s in El Salvador, there’s nothing they can do to help him. That casual act of throwing up their hands and moving on left jaws on the floor, and suddenly reporters began asking the White House some difficult questions.

The Trump administration’s first tactic was to lie. JD Vance claimed that Garcia was a “convicted MS-13 gang member” (he isn’t), which was quickly exaggerated online to become a claim that Garcia was an MS-13 gang “leader” (he isn’t). These claims were instantly countered by court documents which plainly stated “Abrego Garcia has no criminal history” and “the U.S. government has never produced an iota of evidence” to support him having gang links.

Vance promptly launched a thorough investigation to dig up dirt on Garcia but, in a darkly funny twist, the worst his crack team of government detectives could unearth were “some traffic violations”. Embarrassing.

Now a judge has given Trump’s team a kick up the behind. On Friday, District Judge Paula Xinis told the Trump administration they committed “an outright violation” of the law and that Garcia must be returned home. In her ruling, Xinis said: “He was apprehended without legal basis … and without due process” and that “from the moment he was seized it was unconstitutional.”

This passage is striking, from federal judge Paula Xinis' order that the Trump Admin. must return Kilmar Garcia from El Salvador prison to US

Judge:

Trump officials "do indeed cling to the stunning proposition that they can forcibly remove any person—migrant and U.S. citizen…

— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) April 6, 2025

Judge Xinis ordered that Garcia must be returned to the United States by midnight on Apr. 7, i.e. tonight. However, it appears that nobody is doing anything to make that order a reality. The ICE agents who dumped him into one of the most notorious prisons on Earth aren’t going to get him back, and the higher-ups in the Trump administration are likely bitter that this case has made them look like fools and don’t want to back down.

It’s worth noting that the Trump administration ignored court orders blocking the El Salvador flights from landing, leaving those officials in danger of being held in contempt. Those same officials may well shrug, decide to ignore Judge Xinis’ order, and just face another charge of contempt.

After all, what better way to curry favor with Daddy Trump than to stand up to a judge (doubtless already being smeared as a liberal activist judge) and take a hit for the team, even if it means throwing an innocent man’s life down the drain?

There is, of course, the possibility that retrieving Garcia from El Salvador is indeed underway, but for obvious reasons, the Trump people don’t want to make a huge deal out of having to fix their mistake. But believing that would require a large dose of optimism and belief in the rule of law, and both of those are running dry.