(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump’s special assistant, Harrison Fields, confirmed on “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” that the administration will not be attempting to bring Kilmar Abrego Garcia back to the United States.
Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran native, had been living in the United States since 2019 until he was deported in March, according to the Department of Justice, because he was the leader of a Long Island branch of the notorious Salvadoran gang MS-13.
“This individual will stay there,” Fields told NewsNation. “This wasn’t a Maryland father; this is a Salvadoran man who was illegally in this country, who is affiliated with MS-13.”
“This is exactly what President Trump was elected to do: to return these people to their home countries, and that’s what he did,” Fields added.
According to Abrego Garcia’s wife and lawyer, he’s a hard-working father with a clean criminal record.
He entered the U.S. illegally but has been living here with his wife and son under protected legal status since 2019. This means he should not have been deported back to El Salvador because a judge agreed, after hearing his case, that his life was in danger there.
The Trump administration has continued to argue that Abrego Garcia is a high-ranking gang member after they say a confidential informant identified him as such, specifically identifying him as part of MS-13’s Long Island leadership.
The U.S. State Department designated MS-13, also known as Mara Salvatrucha, as a terrorist organization. The gang was created by Salvadoran immigrants in the U.S. before it gained a foothold in Central America, according to officials.
The Supreme Court ruled last week that the Trump administration must bring Abrego Garcia back to the U.S. However, the Department of Justice is pushing back on that ruling, arguing that the courts have no authority to force his return.
On Monday, Trump met with Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele in the White House. Bukele said during that meeting that he does not plan on returning Abrego Garcia to the U.S.
“How can I return him to the United States?” He asked. “I smuggle him into the United States? Of course, I’m not going to do it.”