Rubio also expressed gratitude to El Salvador’s President, Nayib Bukele, for agreeing to imprison the deported individuals. According to Rubio, Bukele had specifically requested the return of two leaders of the MS-13 gang, as well as 21 other Salvadorans held in the U.S., so they could “face justice in their homeland.”
Erik Prince, a longtime Trump ally, has been in discussions with Bukele since last year about El Salvador accepting undocumented migrants deported from the U.S. in the event of a Trump presidency. While the specifics of Prince’s involvement remain unclear, his communications with Bukele suggest that Trump’s deportation strategy had been in the works well in advance.
“Oopsie…too late” Rubio Agrees
Despite the federal judge’s order halting the deportations, Rubio later posted on X that the U.S. had successfully deported “2 dangerous top MS-13 leaders plus 21 of its most wanted back to face justice in El Salvador.” He added that the administration had sent “over 250 alien enemy members of Tren de Aragua,” who were now being held in El Salvador’s prison system at a cost-effective rate for U.S. taxpayers.
