Team Trump Is Gaming Out How to Ship U.S. Citizens to El Salvador

[Judi Lynn]

Trump officials are talking internally about denaturalizing American citizens — and potentially sending some to El Salvador

By Nikki McCann Ramirez, Asawin Suebsaeng, Andrew Perez
April 12, 2025



Donald Trump and his White House have moved to deport green-card holders for espousing pro-Palestinian views, shipped hundreds of migrants to a notorious Salvadoran mega-prison without due process (in defiance of a judge’s order), and are now publicly musing about sending United States citizens to prison in El Salvador.

Trump said last weekend he would “love” to send American criminals there — and would even be “honored” to, depending on “what the law says.” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed this week that the president has discussed this idea privately, too, adding he would only do this “if it’s legal.” El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, has for months been offering to hold U.S. citizens in his country’s prison system, which he has turned into “a judicial black hole” rife with “systematic torture,” as one human rights advocate recently told Rolling Stone.

Legal experts agree that sending American citizens to prison in El Salvador would be flagrantly illegal under both U.S. and international law — and that the idea itself is shockingly authoritarian, with few parallels in our nation’s history.

The Trump administration is indeed discussing this idea behind the scenes, two sources familiar with the matter confirmed to Rolling Stone. In their most serious form, these conversations have revolved around attempting to denaturalize American citizens and deport them to other countries, including El Salvador.

More:
https://archive.is/20250412162612/https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-features/trump-el-salvador-us-citizens-denaturalization-1235315975/#selection-1593.0-1647.175

[kimbutgar]

1. If this happens I hope Americans take to the street in massive numbers and do an economic strike

only buy food and essentials for a week of strikes.

[Judi Lynn]

2. Trump Supported Sending US Citizens to Salvadoran Prisons, But There is No Legal Pathway To Do So, Experts Say

The Trump administration is eyeing sending U.S. citizens who have committed "heinous, violent" crimes despite lack of legality.

Maria Villaroel Maria Villarroel / Published Apr 11 2025, 4:22 PM EDT

The Trump administration recently deported a Maryland father to El Salvador's mega-prison, leading to the Supreme Court to order his return back to the U.S. But despite that case, which officials acknowledged as a mistake, the administration has embraced the initiative, removing Venezuelans accused of being gang members and with President Donald Trump saying he would also like the idea of deporting American citizens to the country's infamous prison system.

The president told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday that "we have some horrible criminals, American grown, born," and that he's "all for" sending them to prisons in El Salvador— where some Venezuelan migrants are already being detained. "I don't know what the law says on that," he added.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the comments Tuesday, telling reporters that, "to the president's idea for American citizens to potentially be deported, these would be heinous, violent criminals who have broken our nation's laws repeatedly," The Washington Post recalled.

But despite the administration's declaration, legal experts are sounding the alarm for potential grounds of abuse, arguing there is no legal pathway for this program to take shape. This is because a U.S. citizen cannot legally be deported or denied entry to the United States. Jean Reisz, an associate professor of law who co-directs the University of Southern California Gould School of Law Immigration Clinic, said Trump's suggestion "does not seem very realistic."

Last month, after attacks on Tesla dealerships and vehicles in protest of Trump's influential adviser Elon Musk, Trump said on social media that he hoped offenders would "get 20 year jail sentences" that could be served "in the prisons of El Salvador."

More:
https://www.latintimes.com/trump-supported-sending-us-citizens-salvadoran-prisons-there-no-legal-pathway-do-so-experts-580526

(My bolding)

[Turbineguy]

3. People in the trump administration should realize

if trump is no longer president, he can't protect them. There is no such thing as a Thousand Year Reich, and "I vas only following orders" is not a defense for breaking the law.

Clearly some are suffering from "Washingtonitis", a disease characterized by pomposity and self-regard.