President Trump stated that he does not know if everyone in the United States, whether citizens or non-citizens, is entitled to due process, as stated in both the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments.
“I do not know. I’m not a lawyer. “I don’t know,” Mr. Trump told NBC News’ Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press” when asked if he agreed that everyone on US soil has the right to due process in the courts.
When asked by Welker in an interview aired Sunday if he believes he must uphold the Constitution as president, Mr. Trump replied, “I don’t know.”
“I have to respond by saying again, and I have brilliant lawyers that work for me, and they are going to obviously follow what the Supreme Court said,” Trump told reporters.
His comments came as he discussed the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an El Salvadoran native who is married to a US citizen and lived in Maryland before being mistakenly deported by the Trump administration in March. Immigration and Customs Enforcement admitted in a court filing that the Baltimore father’s deportation was a “administrative error” and a “oversight.”
A federal judge and the United States Supreme Court ordered the Trump administration to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return to the United States last month, but he is still detained in Santa Ana, El Salvador, after spending nearly a month at the country’s notorious Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT).
When asked about the delay in returning Abrego Garcia to the United States and whether he is defying the Supreme Court, Mr. Trump told NBC that Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Justice Department interpreted the 9-0 decision differently.
“They aren’t seeing the decision the way you described it. They have an entirely different perspective. “They believe it’s a completely different decision,” Mr. Trump stated.
“I have the power to ask for him to come back if I’m instructed by the attorney general that it’s legal to do so,” the chief executive said. “However, the head of El Salvador will make the final decision on whether or not he should return. “He’s an extremely capable man.”
President Nayib Bukele has stated that he will not return Abrego Garcia to the US. During his visit to the White House last month, Bukele referred to Abrego Garcia as a “terrorist” and stated, “I do not have the authority to return him to the United States.”
Mr. Trump also stated in the interview that aired on Sunday that the Department of Justice may return to the Supreme Court and ask the justices to clarify their order to the administration to “facilitate” Abrego Garcia’s return. The president and the Justice Department have stated that Abrego Garcia should not be in the country due to his alleged involvement with MS-13.
The Trump administration, including “border czar” Tom Homan, claimed that Abrego Garcia’s finger tattoos are “one of many” proofs that he is affiliated with the gang.
“He seems certainly like a very dangerous, very bad person,” the president told Welker, referring to the audio of Abrego Garcia’s wife filing a protective order against him in 2020, alleging domestic violence, released last week by the Department of Homeland Security.
Jennifer Vasquez also filed another protective order against him in 2021, citing allegations of domestic violence, according to court records obtained by CBS News. Abrego Garcia has no criminal history, and his family claims he was never involved in a gang.
Vasquez has been an outspoken advocate for Abrego Garcia’s return since his deportation. At a rally outside the White House on Thursday, she stated that her husband “was thrown away to die.”
“My children and I had to watch Trump and Bukele’s administration laugh at our pain,” Vasquez told the press. “The highest court ruled that Kilmar must be returned home. So, why are they still waiting? “Enough is enough.”