Jayapal Welcomes Home Americans, While Condemning Trump Administration’s Unlawful Removals

SEATTLE, W.A. — U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Immigration, Integrity, Security, and Enforcement, issued the following statement regarding the reported deal between the United States, El Salvador, and Venezuela:

“I am grateful that United States citizens held by the oppressive Maduro regime are finally able to come home and be reunited with their loved ones. Many of these Americans had been unjustly detained for years.

“At the same time, I am outraged that President Trump and his administration continue to lie to the American people. For months, the Trump administration had been telling U.S. courts. They claimed that the individuals he had shipped off to El Salvador with no due process were under the complete control of the El Salvadoran government, and the administration had no ability to bring them back to the United States for their fair day in court.  Today’s announcement shows that it was false.

“I am also devastated for the many Venezuelans who came to the U.S., who never committed a crime, and many of whom were fleeing persecution from the Maduro regime, are now being sent back into the hands of their persecutors.  These individuals, like Andry Hernandez Romero, were never able to present their asylum claim and were sent out of this country in violation of our constitution and our laws.

“We will hold this administration accountable for its continued lawlessness.”

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Issues: Civil Rights, Immigration