Kilmar Abrego Garcia is a Maryland resident, a father, and a union worker. In March 2025, he was deported to El Salvador and imprisoned in the notorious CECOT mega-prison. This occurred despite a 2019 court order explicitly prohibiting his removal due to credible threats to his life from gangs in El Salvador.

The Trump administration labeled this an “administrative error.” But when the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ordered the government to facilitate his return, the administration deflected responsibility, claiming it lacked the authority to act because Abrego Garcia is now in Salvadoran custody. ​

President Trump and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele publicly mocked the situation, with Bukele refusing to release Abrego Garcia and Trump suggesting that critics would prefer “criminals” released back into the U.S. ​

Let’s be clear: this isn’t about one man. It’s about a deliberate strategy to undermine the rule of law and silence dissent. Trump has even proposed deporting U.S. citizens to foreign prisons, a move that legal experts deem unconstitutional. ​

There is nothing “great” about silencing critics, intimidating opposition, or jailing peaceful dissidents. These actions echo some of the darkest chapters in our history — from the Chinese Exclusion Act to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, to the post-9/11 surveillance of Arab and Muslim communities.​

As someone running for office on an anti-MAGA platform, I may be a target. I don’t care. I will not be silent while our democracy is dismantled.​

To those feeling afraid or hopeless: keep speaking up, keep organizing, and keep fighting. Our voices are our power, and together, we can build an America that lives up to its ideals.​

This isn’t just a campaign. It’s an intervention.​