Van Hollen returns to US after meeting with wrongfully deported man in El Salvador

Hollen visited El Salvador to advocate for Garcia's release, following claims by the Trump administration that his deportation resulted from an administrative mistake.

In Short

• Democratic US Senator Chris Van Hollen returned to the US
• Hollen visited El Salvador to advocate for Garcia’s release
• Democrats' pressure hasn't led to Garcia's return

Democratic US Senator Chris Van Hollen returned to the US after meeting Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a man who was wrongfully deported to El Salvador by the Trump administration despite a court order halting his deportation.

Hollen visited El Salvador to advocate for Garcia’s release, following claims by the Trump administration that his deportation resulted from an administrative mistake.

Although several Democrats have announced plans to travel to El Salvador to advocate for Garcia’s release, the partisan pressure has so far failed to produce any results.

Trump Criticized Hollen

President Donald Trump sharply criticized the Maryland senator at the White House over his recent visit to El Salvador, seeking Garcia’s release, stating that the deported man "is not coming back." Trump also called Hollen ‘fake’. Meanwhile, Senator Hollen emphasized that the judge in the case had noted a lack of substantial evidence supporting the claims related to Garcia.

Salvadoran President Bukele’s Response

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has remained firm on keeping Abrego Garcia out of the US, despite some officials in Trump’s administration calling his deportation a mistake and the US Supreme Court making efforts to bring him back.

On Thursday, Bukele shared photos of Senator Van Hollen meeting with Abrego Garcia and stated that the prisoner would “stay in El Salvador’s custody” at the country’s high-security Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT).

Bukele also mocked the meeting, joking that Van Hollen and Abrego Garcia were sipping margaritas together. “Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the “death camps” & “torture”, now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!” he posted on X.

Garcia, a Salvadoran national who had been living legally in the US with a valid work permit since 2019, was deported on March 15, despite a court order that had paused his removal.