Democrat faults his own party for picking wrong battle with case of deported MS-13 suspect
Rep. Henry Cuellar is pushing back against his own party over its stance on immigration, criticizing fellow Democrats for defending an illegal immigrant the Trump administration says is a violent MS-13 gang member.
"This is not the right issue to talk about due process. This is not the right case. This is not the right person to be saying that we need to bring him back to the United States," Cuellar, D-Texas, told "The Brian Kilmeade Show" on Fox News Radio.
Cuellar was referring to Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old illegal immigrant deported in March to a prison in El Salvador. The Trump administration alleges that Abrego Garcia is affiliated with the violent MS-13 gang and publicized court documents for a protective order from his wife. Some Democrats argue that he was denied due process and are demanding his return.
Jennifer Vasquez Sura, Abrego Garcia's wife, said in a recent statement that she had been acting out of caution by seeking a protective order.
"After surviving domestic violence in a previous relationship, I acted out of caution following a disagreement with Kilmar by seeking a civil protective order, in case things escalated," she said in part. "Things did not escalate, and I decided not to follow through with the civil court process. We were able to work through the situation privately as a family, including by going to counseling."
Cuellar said making Abrego Garcia the face of immigration advocacy damages the party's credibility with voters.
"Democrats should not take this issue," Cuellar said. "When you look at immigration, is this the immigration case you want to take to fight on? In my opinion, absolutely no."
Democratic lawmakers are challenging the administration's deportation policies, including flights sending suspected criminal illegal migrants back to Central America. Several lawmakers have traveled to El Salvador to advocate for Abrego Garcia's release and requested daily proof of life for him.
Abrego Garcia crossed the U.S. border illegally, but later attempted to obtain protected legal status while living in Maryland.
His 2025 deportation was described in court as an administrative error. However, some Trump officials say the removal was justified, citing his alleged gang ties.
Cuellar, whose South Texas district includes a substantial Latino population, said he hears growing frustration from constituents about what they see as an inconsistent and unfair immigration system.
"People were saying, 'Our parents came in the legal way. They came in, became legal residents,' and, 'They came in and did it the right way.' But when you see people jumping in, not knowing who they are," he said. "That's something wrong."
Cuellar also expressed support for certain Trump-era border policies, particularly regarding security and enforcement. He dismissed previous Democratic claims that the border was secure.
"It was laughable when they would say that the border was secured," he said. "Why are we going to let people in when you have no idea who these people are, and then let them roam the streets of the United States while you wait four or five years for an immigration court hearing? That was wrong, absolutely wrong."
While Cuellar said he wouldn't judge fellow Democrats for their choices, he questioned the party's broader strategy on immigration and noted that some of the Trump administration's policies were having an impact.
"The president has gotten Mexico to engage a lot more, if he can get them to play defense on their under 20-yard line instead of our 1-yard line called the U.S. border, then the better it is," he said.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration continues to face legal challenges over its immigration agenda. The Supreme Court is set to hear a case in May involving federal judges who blocked an executive order aimed at ending birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants.
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Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Trump aides want Texas to redraw its congressional maps to boost the GOP. What would that mean?
This coverage is made possible through Votebeat, a nonpartisan news organization covering local election administration and voting access. Sign up for Votebeat Texas' free newsletters here. Republicans representing Texas in Congress are considering this week whether to push their state Legislature to take the unusual step of redrawing district lines to shore up the GOP's advantage in the U.S. House. But the contours of the plan, including whether Gov. Greg Abbott would call a special session of the Legislature to redraw the maps, remain largely uncertain. The idea is being driven by President Donald Trump's political advisers, who want to draw up new maps that would give Republicans a better chance to flip seats currently held by Democrats, according to two GOP congressional aides familiar with the matter. That proposal, which would involve shifting GOP voters from safely red districts into neighboring blue ones, is aimed at safeguarding Republicans' thin majority in Congress, where they control the lower chamber, 220-212. The redistricting proposal, and the Trump team's role in pushing it, was first reported by The New York Times Monday. Without a Republican majority in Congress, Trump's legislative agenda would likely stall, and the president could face investigations from newly empowered Democratic committee chairs intent on scrutinizing the White House. Here's what we know about the plan so far: On Capitol Hill, members of the Texas GOP delegation huddled Monday night to discuss the prospect of reshaping their districts. Most of the 25-member group expressed reluctance about the idea, citing concerns about jeopardizing their districts in next year's midterms if the new maps overextended the GOP's advantage, according to the two GOP aides, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private deliberations. Rep. Jodey Arrington, R-Lubbock, was skeptical of the idea. 'We just recently worked on the new maps,' Arrington told The Texas Tribune. To reopen the process, he said, 'there'd have to be a significant benefit to our state.' The delegation has yet to be presented with mockups of new maps, two aides said. Each state's political maps must be redrawn once a decade, after each round of the U.S. census, to account for population growth and ensure every congressional and legislative district has roughly the same number of people. Texas lawmakers last overhauled their district lines in 2021. 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Members of Trump's political team are also expected to attend, according to Hunt and two GOP congressional aides familiar with the matter. Natalia Contreras is a reporter for Votebeat in partnership with the Texas Tribune. She's based in Corpus Christi. Contact Natalia at ncontreras@ Disclosure: New York Times has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here. Big news: 20 more speakers join the TribFest lineup! New additions include Margaret Spellings, former U.S. secretary of education and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center; Michael Curry, former presiding bishop and primate of The Episcopal Church; Beto O'Rourke, former U.S. Representative, D-El Paso; Joe Lonsdale, entrepreneur, founder and managing partner at 8VC; and Katie Phang, journalist and trial lawyer. Get tickets. TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.
The Hill
10 minutes ago
- The Hill
ICE raids accelerate, protests spread
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Yahoo
11 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Musk regrets some of his Trump criticisms, says they 'went too far'
Musk regrets some of his Trump criticisms, says they 'went too far' Elon Musk, the world's richest person and Donald Trump's former advisor, says he regretted some of his recent criticisms of the US president (Kevin Dietsch) (Kevin Dietsch/GETTY IMAGESvia AFP) Elon Musk, the world's richest person and Donald Trump's former advisor, said Wednesday he regretted some of his recent criticisms of the US president, after the pair's public falling-out last week. "I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far," Musk wrote on his social media platform X, in a message that was received favorably by the White House. Musk's expression of regret came just days after Trump threatened the tech billionaire with "serious consequences" if he sought to punish Republicans who vote for a controversial spending bill. Their blistering break-up -- largely carried out on social media before a riveted public since Thursday last week -- was ignited by Musk's harsh criticism of Trump's so-called "big, beautiful" spending bill, which is currently before Congress. ADVERTISEMENT Some lawmakers who were against the bill had called on Musk -- one of the Republican Party's biggest financial backers in last year's presidential election -- to fund primary challenges against Republicans who voted for the legislation. "He'll have to pay very serious consequences if he does that," Trump, who also branded Musk "disrespectful," told NBC News on Saturday, without specifying what those consequences would be. Trump also said he had "no" desire to repair his relationship with the South African-born Tesla and SpaceX chief, and that he has "no intention of speaking to him." But after Musk's expression of regret, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Trump was "appreciative," adding that "no efforts" had been made on a threat by Trump to end some of Musk's government contracts. "The president acknowledged the statement that Elon put out this morning, and he is appreciative of it," Leavitt said. ADVERTISEMENT According to the New York Times, Musk's message followed a phone call to Trump late on Monday night. Vice President JD Vance and Chief of Staff Susan Wiles had also been working with Musk on how to broker a truce with Trump, the report said. - 'Wish him well' - In his post on Wednesday, Musk did not specify which of his criticisms of Trump had gone "too far." The former allies had seemed to have cut ties amicably about two weeks ago, with Trump giving Musk a glowing send-off as he left his cost-cutting role at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). But their relationship cracked within days, with Musk describing the spending bill as an "abomination" that, if passed by Congress, could define Trump's second term in office. Trump hit back at Musk's comments in an Oval Office diatribe and from there the row detonated, leaving Washington stunned. ADVERTISEMENT Trump later said on his Truth Social platform that cutting billions of dollars in subsidies and contracts to Musk's companies would be the "easiest way" to save the US government money. US media have put the value of the contracts at $18 billion. With real political and economic risks to their falling out, both already appeared to inch back from the brink on Friday, with Trump telling reporters "I just wish him well," and Musk responding on X: "Likewise." Trump had spoken to NBC on Saturday after Musk deleted one of the explosive allegations he had made during their fallout, linking the president with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who was accused of sex trafficking. bur-arp/aha
