Democratic Sen. Chris Van Holden has requested a meeting with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele during his visit to the United States as he seeks to facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man who was wrongfully deported to the Central American country.
"I have met with Mr. Abrego Garcia's wife, mother and brother and, as you can imagine, they are extremely worried about their health, safety and continued illegal confinement, as am I," Van Hollen said in a letter sent to Milena Mayorga, the country's ambassador to the United States.
NEWS: Sen. Chris Van Hollen requested a meeting w/Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele this week to talk about MD father Kilmar Abrego Garcia's return.
— Mikenzie Frost (@MikenzieFrost) April 14, 2025
"If Kilmar is not home by midweek – I plan to travel to El Salvador this week to check on his condition and discuss his release." pic.twitter.com/ykYhj83pKZ
Van Hollen added that if the man is not returned to the country this week he will travel to the country to "discuss his release."
It is unclear whether Bukele, who is in the U.S. to meet with President Donald Trump on Monday, will accept the meeting. The Trump administration is not making efforts to secure the return of Abrego Garcia despite a court ruling that determined he should be returned from the CECOT mega-prison, a maximum-security facility operated by the Salvadoran government.
Michael Kozak, a senior State Department official, submitted a declaration to a federal judge in Maryland noting that Abrego Garcia is "alive and secure" in El Salvador and "detained pursuant to the sovereign, domestic authority" of that country, as ABC News reports. The filing arrived just minutes before the deadline imposed by Judge Paula Xinis, who has been demanding daily updates on the government's efforts.
The Department of Justice, however, argued in a court filing on Sunday that the federal courts lack the authority to compel the executive branch to engage with foreign governments in a particular way, as The Hill reported.
"The federal courts have no authority to direct the Executive Branch to conduct foreign relations in a particular way," said DOJ lawyers, adding that such decision "is the 'exclusive power of the President as the sole organ of the federal government in the field of international relations."
Abrego Garcia was deported in March despite a 2019 court order barring his removal to El Salvador. He had lived in Maryland under a valid work permit and, according to his lawyers, fled El Salvador due to political violence in 2011. The administration has alleged that Abrego Garcia is affiliated with MS-13, a claim his legal team and his wife strongly deny.
ICE has described the deportation as an "administrative error" but continuously refused to take steps towards his release, with White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt saying he will "not be returning."
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