Are Americans Really That Special?

This is a post based on the April 16, 2025, podcast episode, "Are Americans Really That Special?" Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

What does it mean to be an American citizen in 2025?

Not in the “greatest country on Earth” kind of way — but in the concrete, legal, constitutional sense. Does U.S. citizenship actually mean anything anymore?

But before we get to that, there’s news that’s worth your full attention:

The Federal Court Just Pushed Back — Hard

Wednesday afternoon, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., issued a stunning ruling: the Trump administration may face criminal contempt of court for defying an order to stop deporting individuals to El Salvador. This isn’t civil contempt. This is the kind that could land someone in prison.

The case centers on deportations to El Salvador's infamous maximum-security prison, CECOT — a place so brutal it’s been called one of the deadliest prisons on the planet. The administration was explicitly told by the court to halt flights until it could be determined whether due process was being denied. Instead, they sent at least two flights anyway.

Then they lied about it in court. And stonewalled. And now, a federal judge is demanding they either reverse course or hand over the official responsible for defying the court order. That person could be prosecuted and face either six months in prison or a $1000 fine.

This is a massive moment. It’s the first major judicial check on what’s become a runaway deportation machine — one that increasingly seems unbothered by constitutional rights or basic legal procedure.

The Case of Abrego Garcia

And this brings us to a man named Kilmar Abrego Garcia — the story I’d planned to lead with originally.

Garcia, an undocumented immigrant who’s been in the U.S. since 2011, was mistakenly deported — by the government’s own admission — to El Salvador. His lawyers say he was falsely accused of being in MS-13 based on a tip from an informant in 2019, who’d never met him and lived in another state. No court ever ruled he was in the gang. They only ever ruled that his lawyers in the 2019 case couldn’t disprove the government’s evidence for him to be bonded out of jail.

He was granted protection from deportation to El Salvador by a judge — and still, he was sent to CECOT.

Now here’s the kicker: The Supreme Court ruled 9–0 that the U.S. government must facilitate his return and give him his due process. But instead of doing that, the administration is playing semantics. They say they “can’t” bring him back — because, conveniently, he's already in Salvadoran custody.

Except… they put him there. And they have a multi-million deal with President Bukele’s government to take in deportees, meaning El Salvador is essentially operating as a contractor for the US in this case.

The Oval Office Meeting

On Monday, Trump met with El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, in the White House. When asked if he would return Garcia to the U.S., Bukele laughed it off:

“How can I smuggle the terrorist into the United States? I don't have the power to return him to the United States.

The White House, for its part, doubled down. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt claimed Garcia was a “foreign terrorist” and a “human trafficker” — accusations that, as far as anyone can tell, have never been brought in court.

Moving the Goalposts

Unable to stick the MS-13 label, the administration is shifting its story. Now the argument is: Well, he’s not an American citizen — we can’t force El Salvador to give him back.

Except... we do have the leverage. And under our own laws and Constitution, everyone is entitled to due process, and that process must be followed. The courts have made that clear.

And the failure to do so? It’s now threatening to bring more contempt charges against the administration.

Deporting U.S. Citizens?

Here’s where things go from troubling to outright terrifying.

This week, Donald Trump said— on camera — that he would be open to deporting U.S. citizens if they’re criminals. In his words:

“What do you think there's a special category of person?... I'm all for it.”

Let that sink in. A sitting President, publicly musing about stripping citizens of their rights — and shipping them off to prisons abroad.

Later, in a hot mic moment, he told Bukele:

“The homegrown ones are next… build about five more prisons.”

Since then, CNN has confirmed the White House is actively exploring legal justifications for deporting American citizens.

This Isn’t Just Rhetoric Anymore

• The White House wants to deport 1 million people this year.

• They’re already using military personnel along the U.S. border, on U.S. soil.

• Private military contractors like Erik Prince, Fmr CEO of Blackwater, are pitching plans to carry out mass arrests.

• And the groundwork is being laid for military-run detention camps.

None of this is theoretical. It’s happening in real time.

And here’s why it matters: When due process is ignored for some, it can be ignored for anyone. That includes you. Me. All of us.

Are Americans Still Protected by the Constitution?

That brings me back to my original question:
Are Americans really that special anymore?

The idea of U.S. citizenship used to come with guarantees — the right to a fair trial, to legal representation, to not be cruelly or unusually punished. We weren’t protected because we’re good. We’re protected because we’re citizens, and the law applies to all of us. It also applies to people in the US who aren’t citizens.

If the government gets to decide who is “bad enough” to ignore the Constitution for, then it’s only a matter of time before the law protects no one at all.

One More Thing…

Some good news: people are starting to wake up. New polling from Data for Progress shows that while many support deporting undocumented immigrants who commit crimes, a majority don’t support doing it without evidence or due process.

• 57% of Americans oppose deporting without evidence.

• When asked if legal immigrants should have the right to a trial, attorney, and an appeal, the support jumps into the high 70s, even among Republicans.

So yes, there’s still a line. The question now is: What happens when the government crosses it?

Because from where we’re standing, they’re already mid-stride over the line.