U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen was denied access to meet with wrongfully deported Kilmar Abrego Garcia during a high-stakes diplomatic mission to El Salvador this week. “Why is the government of El Salvador continuing to imprison a man where they have no evidence that he’s committed any crime and they have not been provided any evidence from the United States that he has committed any crime? They should just let him go,” Van Hollen stated following the rebuff.
The Maryland Democrat traveled to El Salvador specifically to advocate for Abrego Garcia, who was deported despite a standing court order protecting him. El Salvador’s Vice President Félix Ulloa refused Van Hollen’s request to visit Abrego Garcia in prison.
During the tense meeting with Ulloa, Van Hollen was told that Abrego Garcia’s continued detention at the notorious CECOT supermax prison was linked to financial arrangements with the Trump administration. “His answer was that the Trump administration is paying El Salvador, the government of El Salvador to keep him at CECOT,” Van Hollen revealed after the meeting.
The diplomatic mission represents part of a broader effort by Democrats to secure Abrego Garcia’s return to the United States following what they characterize as an illegal deportation. The case has increasingly highlighted tensions around the Trump administration’s aggressive deportation policies and apparent resistance to judicial oversight.
Attorney General Pam Bondi has taken a hard line against Abrego Garcia’s return, citing alleged gang affiliations. “He should not be in our country,” Bondi said. “He was deported. They needed one additional step in paperwork, but now MS-13 is characterized as they should be as an FTO, as a foreign terrorist organization. So he is not coming back to our country,” she declared.
Yet critics point out that no evidence of gang membership has been presented in court. The Trump administration’s claims about Abrego Garcia’s alleged MS-13 ties have not been substantiated with any criminal record either in the U.S. or El Salvador.
The legal battle continues to intensify. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis has ordered Trump administration officials to provide sworn testimony regarding their compliance with court orders to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return from El Salvador.
Despite the setback, Van Hollen has vowed to continue pressing for Abrego Garcia’s release. The senator’s unsuccessful attempt to meet with the detained man has only strengthened Democrats’ resolve to challenge what they see as executive overreach in immigration enforcement.
“They have not been provided any evidence from the United States that he has committed any crime,” Van Hollen emphasized. “They should just let him go.”