Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) said Saturday that Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported to a notorious prison in El Salvador, is “a lot less criminal” that Donald Trump.
“We know that they admitted that they were wrong. Now they’re trying to double back and say, well, he’s this terrible person and all this kind of stuff,” Crockett said in an interview on MSNBC. “But here’s the reality. As far as I’m concerned, he’s a lot less criminal than the person that’s sitting in the White House, because last time I checked, he doesn’t have any criminal convictions.”
Crockett also praised Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen who traveled to El Salvador this week to meet with Abrego Garcia who was living in Maryland with his wife, an American citizen, and their children before he was deported.
“Kudos to Senator Van Hollen and honestly, that’s what it looks like to be an elected representative. He represents Maryland,” Crockett said. “This is someone who is a Maryland resident. And he decided that he was going to go down there and check on him.”
Abrego Garcia was sent to a mega-prison in El Salvador last month despite a 2019 court order barring his deportation to that country. Though the Trump administration has described his deportation as a mistake and the U.S. Supreme Court has called on the administration to facilitate his return, the administration has said he will not be returning to the U.S.
Trump administration officials have accused Abrego Garcia of being affiliated with MS-13, committing domestic violence, and human trafficking. They have provided no evidence to support their claims and Abrego Garcia has no criminal convictions in the U.S.
Trump, meanwhile has been convicted on 34 felony counts related to falsifying business records last year. He also faced several more serious charges related to his attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election and mishandling classified documents. Those cases were dropped when he won the 2024 presidential election.
