WASHINGTON — Congressman Dan Goldman (D-NY) has fiercely criticized President Donald Trump for suggesting the deportation of American citizens to El Salvador’s notorious mega-prisons, calling it “the stuff of dictators.” In a CNN interview with Wolf Blitzer, Goldman decried the proposal as a dangerous escalation of Trump’s authoritarian tactics, warning that it threatens the core of U.S. democracy.
The controversy stems from Trump’s April 14 Oval Office meeting with El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, where Trump proposed sending “homegrown criminals” to the Central American nation for imprisonment. The idea builds on a $6 million deal where the U.S. pays El Salvador to detain deportees in the Terrorism Confinement Center (Cecot), a prison known for torture and overcrowding. Bukele, whose government has arrested over 80,000 under a state of emergency, agreed to consider building more facilities. Trump’s Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt later confirmed the administration is exploring the legality of deporting citizens, despite clear constitutional prohibitions.
Goldman called the suggestion “absurd” and “ridiculous,” pointing to Trump’s pattern of overreach, including ordering the Department of Justice to investigate political enemies. “This is not the stuff of democratically elected presidents,” he said, accusing Trump of whittling away at democratic values to consolidate power. He criticized Republicans in Congress for failing to act as a check, leaving the courts as the last defense against Trump’s “devastating actions.”
The proposal echoes the ongoing case of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man wrongfully deported to Cecot despite a 2019 court order protecting him. A unanimous Supreme Court ruling on April 10 ordered his return, but Trump and Bukele have refused to comply, with Bukele baselessly calling him a “terrorist.” Goldman has previously suggested cutting U.S. payments to El Salvador as leverage, highlighting the ethical and legal issues of such detentions.
On X, reactions are heated, with users like
@PawlowskiMario comparing the policy to “Soviet gulags,” while legal experts warn of a constitutional crisis. Goldman’s stark warning resonates: if Trump can deport citizens to foreign prisons, the U.S. risks becoming a “MAGA dystopia” under unchecked authoritarian rule. As courts remain the last barrier, the nation faces a critical juncture in defending its democratic principles.
