ArcaMax

In politics, creating and then owning the narrative is the best way to deceive the public, especially when a compliant media helps promote it and ignores later information that contradicts the initial narrative.

Such has been the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a native of El Salvador, who violated U.S. immigration laws and has lived in Maryland for the last 13 years. The media describe him as a “Maryland man” simply because he has been living in that state, but for fewer years than he lived in his native country.

The Department of Homeland Security characterizes him quite differently. Assistant Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin has an alternative and accurate narrative: “Garcia is an MS-13 gang member, illegal alien from El Salvador, and suspected human trafficker. The facts reveal he was pulled over with eight individuals in a car on an admitted three-day journey from Texas to Maryland with no luggage. The facts speak for themselves, and they reek of human trafficking. The media’s sympathetic narrative about this criminal illegal gang member has completely fallen apart. We hear far too much about the gang members and criminals’ false sob stories and not enough about their victims.”

Garcia has also been described in some media reports as a “family man.” In 2021 his wife applied for a protective order, saying he beat her. He has admitted never to have been a legal U.S. resident. In April, 2019, an immigration judge ordered him detained until a deportation hearing. In October of that year, another immigration judge ordered Garcia deported, but the order was never overturned and has never expired, and he remained in Maryland.

Donald Trump was president in 2019. He must have missed that one.

Last week, Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and a real “Maryland man” visited Garcia in his upgraded prison surroundings and came back claiming Garcia had been denied “due process.” As noted, Garcia received due process before two immigration judges. Is Van Hollen that misinformed? Several Republicans and conservative commentators have noted Van Hollen has said virtually nothing about the victims of MS-13 and victims of other criminal aliens.

Does Van Hollen think this is the best way for Democrats to improve their dismal poll numbers? Maybe he should join Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont democratic socialist, and AOC, a socialist congresswoman from New York, on their anti-oligarchy road show. There are probably a few seats available on that large $15,000 per hour private jet ferrying them around. Oh, the carbon footprints they are leaving!

President Trump ran on and won largely on closing the border and deporting those who broke the law to come to America. Polls show a majority still support his deportation efforts.

Last week the mother of Rachel Morin appeared in the White House briefing room. Patty Morin described how her daughter, a mother of five, was raped and murdered and her body stuffed in a tunnel drain. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt asked where was Van Hollen’s sympathy for her and other victims?

Good question. I sense a campaign theme for Republicans in next year’s congressional elections with relatives of others who have been raped and murdered telling their stories to the public. Voters are largely on their side and not on the side of Democrats who have again picked the wrong issue, mistakenly hoping it will return them to power.

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Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com. Look for Cal Thomas’ latest book “A Watchman in the Night: What I've Seen Over 50 Years Reporting on America" (HumanixBooks).

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