The Trump administration has until the end of today to return Kilmar Abrego García, who the government admits was wrongfully deported from Maryland, to the United States if it is to comply with an order issued by a federal judge on Friday. The administration has been rebuffed by a federal appellate court, but it has already asked the Supreme Court to intervene.
Over the weekend, the federal government asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit to block the lower court’s command. The appellate court immediately fast-tracked this appeal. In an impressive show of the important stakes at issue, lawyers for Abrego García and the Justice Department filed their arguments with the appellate court over the weekend.
This morning, the appellate court unanimously refused to block the lower court’s return directive. Two of the judges sided entirely with the district court, explaining, “The United States government has no legal authority to snatch a person who is lawfully present in the United States off the street and remove him from the country without due process. The Government’s contention otherwise, and its argument that the federal courts are powerless to intervene, are unconscionable.”
A third judge, Harvie Wilkinson, also refused to block the lower court’s order, but on more narrow grounds. Wilkinson would have interpreted the district court’s preliminary injunction as requiring nothing more from the Trump administration than to “facilitate” Abrego García’s return to the United States. Wilkinson would not have interpreted the district court’s order as requiring Abrego García’s return.
While the Fourth Circuit was deliberating, the Justice Department also asked the Supreme Court to intervene. In a request submitted early this morning, the Trump administration largely repeats its arguments that a federal judge has no power to order it to request that El Salvador release Abrego García to U.S. government officials—much less demand that U.S. officials actually return him to the United States. If a federal court could order Executive branch officials to make this request, “district courts would effectively have extraterritorial jurisdiction over the United States’ diplomatic relations with the whole world,” the Justice Department argues.
All of this was expected. What wasn’t was the decision by Justice Department leaders to remove the career lawyer representing the government in this case, Erez Reuveni. Hard as it is to believe, the Justice Department placed Reuveni on leave on Saturday. The top political appointees at the Justice Department, including Attorney General, Pam Bondi, have said publicly that they disapproved of the lawyer’s advocacy in this case. Reuveni’s supervisor was also placed on leave.
Meanwhile, the clock is ticking.
Share this post