Donald Trump wants to review the possibility of deporting the country’s worst violent criminals to El Salvador – even if they are US citizens.
“We also have homegrown criminals that are absolute monsters”, the President said during a press conference, stressing that the law must be reviewed.
It was during a White House meeting with El Salvador’s outspoken president, Nayib Bukele, that Trump declared that he wanted to deport not only foreign criminals to the country – but also American criminals.
– We always have to obey the laws, but we also have homegrown criminals that push people into subways, that hit elderly ladies on the back of the head with a baseball bat when they’re not looking, that are absolute monsters, he explained.
– I’d like to include them in the group of people to get them out of the country, but you’ll have to be looking at the laws on that, the President continued.
During his election campaign, Donald Trump promised to use unorthodox methods and get tough on the widespread violent crime in the country – but the move has nevertheless led to strong reactions and a lot of criticism.
TRUMP: I’D LIKE TO DEPORT OUR HOMEGROWN CRIMINALS AS WELL—IF IT’S LEGAL
“We always have to obey the laws, but we also have homegrown criminals that push people into subways that hit elderly ladies on the back of the head with a baseball bat when they’re not looking that are… https://t.co/kzyUzjdSLa pic.twitter.com/l8wLGvemnj
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) April 14, 2025
“No provision under US law”
Many critics point out that, as a rule, US citizens cannot be deported and that there are only a few exceptions to this rule. These include people born in other countries who have been granted citizenship but lied during their application process or committed terrorist crimes or treason.
– There is no provision under US law that would allow the government to kick citizens out of the country, Erin Corcoran, an immigration law expert at the University of Notre Dame, told the AP news agency.
The civil rights organization ACLU is also highly critical and believes that deportation of American citizens would be a direct attack on the US Constitution.
Sent to mega prison
However, Trump has emphasized that his proposal will only be implemented if it is deemed compatible with the country’s laws. White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt later explained that the move should be seen as a proposal that has been “raised” – but not yet decided. According to analysts, the Constitution must first be revised if deportations of US citizens are to become a reality.
The background to the president’s statement is that Nayib Bukele during a previous meeting opened up to receive American prisoners – an idea that Trump praised and said he “loved”.
Already today, the United States is sending hundreds of migrants with suspected criminal links to El Salvador’s controversial mega prison, the Terrorism Confinement Center, under a contract in which the US pays the country $6 million for their detention.
