President Donald Trump hinted that he could have Kilmar Abrego Garcia returned to the U.S. after he was deported to El Salvador, but noted he wouldn’t.
According to The Hill, during an interview with ABC News’ Terry Moran in the Oval Office on Tuesday, the president was asked about Abrego Garcia, a native from El Salvador, who was living in Maryland before his deportation.
“You could get him back,” Moran said. “There’s a phone on this desk.”
“I could,” Trump replied.
Moran suggested Trump could use his presidential power to call the president of El Salvador to get Abrego Garcia sent back.
“And if he were the gentleman that you say he is, I would do that,” Trump told Moran. “But he’s not.”
In a post on Truth Social, Trump posted a picture allegedly of Abrego Garcia’s knuckles, which were covered with tattoos that have gang associations, specifically MS-13, a notorious prison gang started in El Salvador’s prisons.
“This is the hand of the man that the Democrats feel should be brought back to the United States, because he is such ‘a fine and innocent person’” Trump wrote. “They said he is not a member of MS-13, even though he’s got MS-13 tattooed onto his knuckles, and two Highly Respected Courts found that he was a member of MS-13, beat up his wife, etc. I was elected to take bad people out of the United States, among other things. I must be allowed to do my job. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
In a clip of the interview posted to X, Moran suggested the tattoos on Abrego Garcia’s knuckles were only “interpreted” as gang tattoos and that the picture was a product of “photo shop.”
“They looked and, on his knuckles, he had MS-13 … He had MS-13 on his knuckles,” Trump said.
“He had some tattoos that were interpreted that way … That was photoshopped,” Moran said when Trump insisted Abrego Garcia had the gang tattooed on his fingers.
“That was photoshopped? Terry, you can’t do that,” Trump said in response.
Trump then said Moran was getting his “big break” and that he had chosen Moran to interview him; despite claiming he didn’t know who Moran was.
“They’re giving you the big break of the lifetime. You know, you’re doing the interview, I picked you, because frankly, I’d never heard of you,” Trump said.
“No, he had M-S, as clear as you can be, not interpreted. This is why people no longer believe the news because its fake news,” Trump added, while Moran scrambled to speak over top of the president.
Trump asked Moran why he couldn’t just accept that Abrego Garcia is a member of MS-13 and “move on.”
Watch the video below:
The Hill further reported that the White House has insisted that it remains up to El Salvador to send Abrego Garcia back to the U.S. if they want to.
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