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Karoline Leavitt Dares Judge to Order El Salvador to Return Deported Alleged MS-13 Gang Member as DOJ Appeals Unhinged Ruling

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5 months ago

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In a statement Friday evening, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt dared a federal judge to order El Salvador to return to the U.S. a deported alleged MS-13 gang member, Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was ‘mistakenly’ deported to El Salvador last month, despite a court order protecting him from being sent back to his home country, as part of Trump’s mass deportation of Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gang members to Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT).

At a hearing in the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, Maryland on Friday, Obama appointee Judge Paula Xinis ordered the Trump administration to return Abrego Garcia to the U.S. by 11:59 p.m. Monday, April 7

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, photo via Murray Osorio PLLC immigration law firm.

The defiance by the Trump administration was not matched by the Justice Department, which filed an appeal to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday after a DOJ immigration attorney apologized to Judge Xinis for not being able to persuade the Trump administration to agree to return Abrego Garcia.

Deputy White House Press Secretary Harrison Fields posted a statement by Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt:

“We suggest the Judge contact President @nayibbukele because we are unaware of the judge having jurisdiction or authority over the country of El Salvador.”

On Tuesday, Leavitt was adamant with reporters that the Trump administration would not be returning Abrego Garcia, “The administration maintains the position that this individual was deported to El Salvador and will not be returning to our country and was a member of the brutal and vicious MS-13 gang.”

In an appearance on Fox News Friday, Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin affirmed Abrego Garcia is a member of MS-13, “He’s actually a member of MS-13 and was involved in human trafficking … It is a gang that rapes, maims, and kills Americans for sport. They should not be on U.S. soil.”

White House deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller posted, “Marxist judge now thinks she’s president of El Salvador.”

El Salvador’s actual President, Nayib Bukele, mocked Judge Xinis:

Politico reported on Friday’s hearing where the DOJ attorney kept apologizing to the judge for the behavior of the Trump administration (excerpt):

In a rare courtroom exchange at Friday’s hearing, the lawyer defending the government in the case expressed exasperation with the administration’s approach and its refusal to respond to his queries.

“I am also frustrated that I have no answer for you on a lot of these questions,” said Erez Reuveni, an assistant director in the Justice Department’s Office of Immigration Litigation. “The government made a choice here to produce no evidence.”

…At another point, Reuveni said he’d asked why the U.S. couldn’t seek Abrego Garcia’s return and was rebuffed.

“When this case landed on my desk, I asked my clients that very question. I have not received to date an answer that I find satisfactory,” he said.

Shortly before the judge ruled, the visibly frustrated attorney pleaded with Xinis for 24 hours to try to persuade U.S. officials to try to seek Abrego Garcia’s return without intervention by the court.

“I would ask the court to give us, the defendants, one more chance to do this,” Reuveni said. “That’s my recommendation to my client, but so far that hasn’t happened.”

…Abrego Garcia’s status as a potential member of the MS-13 gang is sure to be a focal point of the unfolding dispute. A judge agreed in 2019 that information supplied to police by an informant was persuasive enough to label him a likely member of the gang and justify his continued detention as a danger to the community.

Though Abrego Garcia arrived in the United States in 2012, he did not seek asylum until his detention in 2019, contending that a local gang in El Salvador had been extorting his mother’s pupusa business while trying to force him to join.

Though a judge denied his asylum claim, noting that he filed it far too late, she agreed to block his removal to El Salvador because of his credible fear he might be persecuted there. After that determination, Abrego Garcia was released from detention and has been residing in Maryland with his U.S. citizen wife and child.

More info on Abrego Garcia via WRC-TV (excerpt, more at link):

ICE detained Abrego Garcia, 29, on March 12 near IKEA in College Park (Maryland). His wife, Jennifer, told NBC Washington he had just left the house with their young son and was heading to a bus stop to pick up their two other kids.

“When they put him in the vehicle, they still took me to the vehicle and opened the door and told me to say goodbye to him,” Jennifer said.

“He just told me to take care of my kids, and I told him everything is going to be fine,” she said, fighting tears. “You’re going to come back, because you haven’t done nothing. You have your work permit.”

Jennifer snapped photos of her husband sitting on a curb with his hands behind his back, wearing a neon work shirt. He was a sheet metal worker and began an apprenticeship program.

…Abrego Garcia was given the status of withholding of removal in 2019, according to attorney Lucia Curiel. A document she provided shows the status was granted and cites a clause that provides restriction on deportation but has exceptions in which the person can be removed, such as reasonable grounds to believe the person is a danger.

Curiel said Abrego Garcia was accused by Prince George’s County police of wearing a gang shirt in March 2019. The claim wasn’t substantiated, she said, but she believes that may be the reason he was targeted for deportation.

Abrego Garcia was suspected of being a gang member after he was seen wearing a Chicago Bulls hat and a hoodie, a lawsuit says. A confidential informant advised he was an MS-13 member, according to the document.

In an ICE document, Cerna said Abrego Garcia was arrested because of his “prominent role in MS-13.” Cerna said elsewhere in the document that he was removed because of his “purported membership in MS-13.”

The post Karoline Leavitt Dares Judge to Order El Salvador to Return Deported Alleged MS-13 Gang Member as DOJ Appeals Unhinged Ruling appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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Politics

President Trump Taps Dr. Ben Carson for New Role — A HUGE Win for America First Agenda

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2 hours ago

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September 25, 2025

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Dr. Ben Carson is the newest member of the Trump administration.

On Wednesday, former Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Ben Carson, was sworn in as the national adviser for nutrition, health, and housing at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins shared that Carson’s role will be to oversee Trump’s new Big Beautiful Bill law, which aims to ensure Americans’ quality of life, from nutrition to stable housing.

After being sworn in, Carson shared, “Today, too many Americans are suffering from the effects of poor nutrition. Through common-sense policymaking, we have an opportunity to give our most vulnerable families the tools they need to flourish.”

Table of Contents

WATCH:

Per USDA:

Today, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced that Dr. Benjamin S. Carson, Sr., M.D., was sworn in as the National Advisor for Nutrition, Health, and Housing at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

“There is no one more qualified than Dr. Carson to advise on policies that improve Americans’ everyday quality of life, from nutrition to healthcare quality to ensuring families have access to safe and stable housing,” said Secretary Rollins.

“With six in ten Americans living with at least one chronic disease, and rural communities facing unique challenges with respect to adequate housing, Dr. Carson’s insight and experience is critical. Dr. Carson will be crucial to implementing the rural health investment provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill and advise on America First polices related to nutrition, health, and housing.

“As the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the first Trump Administration, Dr. Carson worked to expand opportunity and strengthen communities, and we are honored to welcome him to the second Trump Administration to help lead our efforts here at USDA to Make America Healthy Again and ensure rural America continues to prosper.”

“Today, too many Americans are suffering from the effects of poor nutrition. Through common-sense policymaking, we have an opportunity to give our most vulnerable families the tools they need to flourish,” said Dr. Ben Carson. “I am honored to work with Secretary Rollins on these important initiatives to help fulfill President Trump’s vision for a healthier, stronger America.”

On Sunday, Dr. Carson was one of the many speakers at the memorial service of the late TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk.

During the memorial service, Carson highlighted that Kirk was shot at 12:24 p.m. and then continued to share the Bible verse John 12:24, which reads, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.”

WATCH:

The post President Trump Taps Dr. Ben Carson for New Role — A HUGE Win for America First Agenda appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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LEAKED MEMO: Deep State Prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia Claim There Isn’t Enough Evidence to Convict Comey Amid Reports of Imminent Indictment

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2 hours ago

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September 25, 2025

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On Wednesday evening, disgruntled officials in the Eastern District of Virginia leaked contents of a memo explaining why charges should not be brought against James Comey.

As reported earlier, former FBI Director James Comey is expected to be indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia in the next few days.

Comey will reportedly be charged for lying to Congress in a 2020 testimony about whether he authorized leaks to the media.

Officials in the Eastern District of Virginia are still fighting to stop Comey from being charged after Trump fired US Attorney Erik Siebert.

President Trump last week fired Erik Siebert as the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia because he refused to bring charges against Letitia James, Comey, Schiff and others.

On Saturday evening, President Trump announced that he had appointed Lindsey Halligan – his personal attorney who defended him against the Mar-a-Lago raid – as US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Now, with just days to go before the statute of limitations runs out to charge Comey for lying during a September 30, 2020 testimony, Lindsey Halligan is reportedly gearing up to indict Comey.

Prosecutors reportedly gave newly sworn-in Halligan a memo defending James Comey and explaining why charges should not brought against the fired FBI Director.

Per MSNBC’s Ken Dilanian:

Two sources familiar with the matter tell me prosecutors in the EDVA US attorney‘s office presented newly sworn US attorney Lindsey Halligan with a memo explaining why charges should not be brought against James Comey, because there isn’t enough evidence to establish probable cause a crime was committed, let alone enough to convince a jury to convict him.

Justice Department guidelines say a case should not be brought unless prosecutors believe it’s more likely than not that they can win a conviction beyond a reasonable doubt.

The post LEAKED MEMO: Deep State Prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia Claim There Isn’t Enough Evidence to Convict Comey Amid Reports of Imminent Indictment appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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Nearly 8 in 10 Voters Say the United States is in Political Crisis After the Assassination of Charlie Kirk

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2 hours ago

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September 25, 2025

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Nearly eight in ten voters believe that the United States is in a political crisis in the wake of the assassination of conservative icon Charlie Kirk.

According to a Quinnipiac University national poll of registered voters released on Wednesday, a massive 93 percent of Democrats, 84 percent of independents, and 60 percent of Republicans said the nation is in a political crisis.

“The Kirk assassination lays bare raw, bipartisan concerns about where the country is headed,” Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy said of the poll results.

Quinnipiac reports:

Seventy-one percent of voters think politically motivated violence in the United States today is a very serious problem, 22 percent think it is a somewhat serious problem, 3 percent think it is a not so serious problem, and 1 percent think it is not a problem at all.

This is a jump from Quinnipiac University’s June 26 poll when 54 percent thought politically motivated violence in the United States today was a very serious problem, 37 percent thought it was a somewhat serious problem, 6 percent thought it was a not so serious problem, and 2 percent thought it was not a problem at all.

Nearly 6 in 10 voters (58 percent) think it will not be possible to lower the temperature on political rhetoric and speech in the United States, while 34 percent think it will be possible.

Over half, 54 percent, of voters believe the US will see increased political violence over the next few years. Another 27 percent said they think it will stay “about the same,” while just 14 percent believe it will ease.

A 53 percent majority also said they are “pessimistic about freedom of speech being protected in the United States.”

Surprisingly, a 53 percent majority also believes the current system of democracy is not working.

“From a perceived assault on freedom of speech to the fragility of the democracy, a shudder of concern and pessimism rattles a broad swath of the electorate. Nearly 80 percent of registered voters feel they are witnessing a political crisis, seven in ten say political violence is a very serious problem, and a majority say this discord won’t go away anytime soon,” Malloy added.

The vast majority, 82 percent, said the way that people discuss politics is contributing to the violence.

“When asked if political discourse is contributing to violence, a rare meeting of the minds…Republicans, Democrats, and independents in equal numbers say yes, it is,” Malloy said.

The survey was conducted from September 18 to 21 among 1,276 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 3.3 percentage points.

The post Nearly 8 in 10 Voters Say the United States is in Political Crisis After the Assassination of Charlie Kirk appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

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