As you watch the extraordinary spectacle of Trump's government attempting to deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to Uganda, let's not lose sight of just how lawless and indefensible Trump's misconduct has been all throughout.
Here's a thread recapping all of it. 1/
DHS Sec Kristi Noem's announcement of this states AS FACT numerous charges against Abrego. But the admin couldn't produce real evidence of MS-13 ties despite trying for MONTHS. He has been convicted of NONE of the criminal charges lodged here. Guilty until proven innocent. 2/
Noem's announcement notes that when he was arrested in 2019, the PG County Gang Unit validated his MS-13 ties. But as we reported, the cop whose testimony this was based on was suspended soon after and indicted for serious professional misconduct. 3/
newrepublic.com/article/194010…
Internal emails released by whistleblower revealed top DHS officials internally debating the urgent need to "find" evidence that Abrego was in MS-13.
"I have not found anything," said one, "but I'll keep looking."
They never found anything. 4/
newrepublic.com/article/197793…
ICE released declaration that he was "verified member" of MS-13, but proof of this never materialized, either. It was rooted in a judge's declaration that proved to be based on incredibly thin evidence. Trump, Vance used this to smear him for months. 5/
newrepublic.com/article/197793…
JD Vance, Miller and others lied that Trump couldn't bring Abrego back because his fate was up to Bukele. They defied SCOTUS on these grounds. But the claim was absolute nonsense.
Vance's bad faith has been extraordinary all throughout. 6/
After Trump finally caved and brought Abrego back, the admin moved to prosecute him for trafficking. But don't forget this: A leading prosecutor in the office bringing the case resigned. The reason was plainly that the prosecution stank to high hell. 7/
abcnews.go.com/US/mistakenly-…
Now the admin seems to have tried to coerce him into pleading to trafficking (dubious to begin with) by offering a choice: A plea and you go to Costa Rica. No plea and it's Uganda.
That's vile. And @AnnaBower shows it exposes still more bad faith. 8/
bsky.app/profile/annabo…
@AnnaBower Let's not forget, as @LeahLitman says, that this coercion has been enabled by the Supreme Court allowing deportations to third countries to go forward.
SCOTUS has enabled this "campaign of terror" against Abrego to go forward, Litman writes. /9
crookedmedia.substack.com/p/the-supreme-…
@AnnaBower @LeahLitman Trump and Miller had the option AT ANY POINT to simply bring him back and attempt to remove him to a third country or contest his "withholding of removal" status.
That they're doing exactly this now exposes how corrupt this has been all throughout. 10/
@AnnaBower @LeahLitman As @TPM_dk notes, this case has been a test of whether our system can withstand levels of bad faith and abuses of power that seem designed to strain the law's very ability to function.
I hope this thread demonstrates how unfathomably terrible their conduct has truly been. 11/11
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