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Culture War Roundup for the week of April 14, 2025

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What I don't understand is why Trump doesn't just do the malicious compliance thing of bringing him back, let his AG vacate the deportation withholding order, and then immediately send him back after he gets his day in court. Presumably Trump is planning to send additional deportation flights to El Salvador, so him hitching a ride shouldn't require additional resources. It also assuages the fear of US citizens since the Trump administration can't unilaterally strip anyone of citizenship, and it takes the wind out of the sails of his enemies.

Win-win-win for Trump. But I guess it makes him look weak in the short term, or however long the courts drag it out. On the other hand, the facts are fairly clear cut and dry if he loses the deportation protection, so I can't imagine it would drag for too long. On the mutant third hand, maybe the length of a court case is something I shouldn't ever underestimate.

What happens when Garcia goes to the media and tells people about what the conditions are like in the prison?

A lot of would-be immigrants change their mind about crossing the border.

If the man didn’t have a legitimate asylum claim before, he sure as shit has one now.

Does that even matter? The executive branch can make the determination that he's ineligible for asylum no matter the actual legitimacy.