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It seems like the saga of detaining immigrants won’t be ending anytime soon. With each passing day, more immigrants are getting detained. Not to mention that ICE is becoming more vicious in how they handle arrests. Now, Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen is making some serious allegations against the Trump administration. According to the Maryland senator, the Trump administration has promised to pay El Salvador to detain prisoners. This comes after Kilmar Abrego Garcia was illegally abducted.
The Maryland senator stated in a press conference that he learned indirectly that there have been commitments made to El Salvador to keep immigrants there. He claims that the Trump administration has promised El Salvador to pay them $15 million to detain the prisoners deported there, including Garcia. He also claims that the Trump administration has so far paid El Salvador $4 million. The Maryland senator, however, states that he has not seen an agreement where this deal is stated with terms and conditions. “I’m aware that there is some document that memorialized payments,” he concluded.
People Reacting to the Maryland Senator’s Statement
You can hear by the end of the video how journalists and reporters erupted and asked a lot of questions as soon as the Maryland senator finished speaking. People in the comments under the Reddit post were also upset. One person wrote their hopes that people won’t focus on Garcia to the point where they forget about other people who were detained; I definitely agree with him. They wrote:
“you know I am deeply concerned that people are forgetting about the other people on the plane. Mr Abrego Garcia’s case is the most outrageous because of the violation of a specific court order but everyone on that plane was denied due process.”
He continued by saying:
“And I know that case is also still in the courts and is the source of the criminal contempt. But my fear here is that the Administration will give in about Mr Abrego Garcia. He will be brought back and maybe even get a special protective order. And/or the version of a green card that we grant to people who have been abused by the government. And then people will forget about the other people sent to CECOT and are still there in defiance of a court order to turn the plane around. I hope there is a good outcome for Mr Abrego Garcia. But I also hope the American people, the courts and et al don’t forget this is a larger issue.”
What Others Said?
One person replied to this by saying, “We aren’t. We can strike this moment easily. Once this part is resolved, it allows us to more easily facilitate the release of others wrongfully imprisoned as well.” Another Redditor asked that people remember the names of others kidnapped, just like they remember Garcia. “We need to speak their names. I haven’t heard their names yet. We need to point them out just like Kilmar has been,” they wrote. If the Maryland senator’s words are the truth, then this is a dark moment in the history of America and the entire world as well.