Why Dems Shouldn't Be Afraid to Fight for Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Believe it or not, public opinion is on our side -- if we make the case aggressively

Over the weekend, I made the case that Democrats needed to speak up against Trump’s assault on the Constitution. Too many are leaning exclusively into economic arguments, letting Trump’s offenses against our democracy go unchallenged in the public square.

Speaking out against Trump was never more necessary, as evidenced by the absolute shitshow of an Oval Office meeting between Trump and El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele. On live television, Trump and his aides declared that they wouldn’t abide by the Supreme Court ruling to facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia — the man mistakenly sent to rot in an El Salvadoran gulag. They then openly discussed sending U.S. citizens to CECOT.

This is the moment. We are at a crossroads. It’s time to speak up. Corporations have bent the knee; law firms are submitting to Trump; Congress is ceding its authority, and corporate media is making excuses. The courts are trying to stop Trump’s worst offenses, but he ignores their dictates.

Our only weapon is immense public pressure, and no one can exert it but ourselves.

Democrats’ reticence comes from our fear that Trump is leading us into a political trap. Stephen Miller said the quiet part out loud, declaring that Abrego Garcia’s incarceration is a 90-10 issue of public opinion. After getting hammered on border security in the 2024 campaign, many Democrats are once bitten, twice shy when it comes to talking about immigration.

If Trump is laying a trap, it’s not a particularly good one. Democrats have a strong case in calling for Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s return. Public opinion is on our side.

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Now, here’s how to win the argument over Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s illegal rendition to a foreign gulag.

1. Tell Kilmar’s Story

Kilmar Abrego Garcia has been in the United States for more than a decade. He fled gang violence in El Salvador when he was 16 years old. He is married to a U.S. citizen, the father of an American child, and the stepfather of two more American children. He was gainfully employed and a member of a labor union. He has no criminal record and, by all accounts, was an upstanding member of his community.

A judge declared that he could not be deported to El Salvador due to credible fears of persecution from the gangs he originally fled.

Poll after poll shows broad support for deporting criminals and recent arrivals. Polls do not show support for deporting people like Abrego Garcia.

A Pew Research poll from March found that only 15% believe that undocumented immigrants with jobs should be deported; 14% think that undocumented parents of American children should be deported, and only 5% want the spouses of U.S. citizens deported.

All of these categories describe Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

Thanks to Trump, this father and husband is now serving a possible life sentence in a gulag known for torturing and starving its inmates in a country where his life is at risk.

2. He Is Not a Terrorist nor a Member of MS-13

Trump and his aides refer to Abrego Garcia as a member of MS-13 — a gang they have declared a domestic terrorist organization. A Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman compared him to Osama bin Laden during an interview on Fox News.

This is hogwash.

The judge in this case described the government’s claim about gang ties as follows:

The ‘evidence’ against Abrego Garcia consisted of nothing more than his Chicago Bulls hat and hoodie, and a vague, uncorroborated allegation from a confidential informant claiming he belonged to MS-13’s ‘Western’ clique in New York — a place he has never lived.

Because he was denied due process, the Trump Administration never had to present any evidence to support its claims..

3. The Trump Administration Admitted Their Mistake

Lost in the grotesque Oval Office exchange was that the Trump Administration admitted that Abrego Garcia’s deportation to a country he was not allowed to be deported to was a mistake.

Stephen Miller has tried to rewrite history, claiming on Fox News that “a Democrat, saboteur” incorrectly made the claim, and that person has since been put on administrative leave.

Stephen Miller is lying.

Here’s a list of Trump Administration officials who admitted that the deportation was an error via Lawfare Senior Editor Anna Bower:

• Solicitor General Dean John Sauer, in a filing at SCOTUS;

• ICE official Robert L. Cerna, in a sworn declaration; and

• DOJ lawyer Erez Reuveni, in court filings and at a hearing.

4. Americans Don’t Want Their Presidents Ignoring the Courts

Every communication about this case must point out that Trump is ignoring a court order. This is a red line that large majorities of Americans do not want to cross.

According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll, 82% of Americans, including more than two-thirds of Republicans, believe that presidents should obey federal court rulings.

When explicitly asked about continuing deportations in defiance of a court order, Trump has more support but is still on very weak ground. In this scenario, only 40% of all adults support continuing with the deportations. This suggests that about 20% of 2024 Trump voters are uncomfortable with Trump’s position on Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s case.

5. Democrats Should Not Be Afraid

As G. Elliott Morris points out in his Substack, the details of Trump’s immigration agenda are unpopular, and the most unpopular parts are central to the case at hand.

Trump and the MAGA media think they have a winning issue. They don’t. Democrats can win this fight, but we must make the case aggressively and strategically. We have to be loud, or we will be drowned out by the arrogant and insecure liars who sentenced a father and husband to die in a gulag.