Let’s get one thing straight: if you thought Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) had reached peak embarrassment after cozying up to an alleged MS-13 gang member and illegal alien accused of domestic abuse, buckle up—because the sequel might just be worse than the original.
Rather than quietly backing away from the political minefield he walked into, Van Hollen spent Easter Sunday doubling down, hitting all the usual Beltway-friendly media outlets to spin his bizarre, taxpayer-funded trip to El Salvador. But even on sympathetic turf, the wheels came off fast.
.@ChrisVanHollen proves he completely misses the point in his response to Patty Morin, whose daughter was murdered by an illegal immigrant in Maryland: “I’m not sure why Abrego Garcia’s rights should be denied based on an awful murder that he had absolutely nothing to do with.” pic.twitter.com/gIvrBcAIcO
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 20, 2025
On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Van Hollen revealed just how disconnected he is from the concerns of Marylanders. When questioned about the brutal murder of Rachel Morin, a Maryland resident killed by an illegal alien with suspected cartel ties, Van Hollen didn’t express outrage, solidarity, or even mild concern. Instead, he shrugged it off, saying he didn’t see what that had to do with defending Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the deported gang suspect at the center of his mission.
Imagine that: a sitting senator from Maryland brushing off the murder of one of his constituents because it’s inconvenient to his narrative.
Van Hollen REFUSES to say Abrego-Garcia isn’t in MS13:
Bash: Can you say with absolute certainty that [Abrego-Garcia] is not, nor has he ever been a member of MS13?
Van Hollen: Accuses Trump of trying to “change the subject” — as he then changes the subject: “So I’m not going… pic.twitter.com/HcA8mMXOT6
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) April 20, 2025
On CNN, Van Hollen was confronted with the simplest question you could ask in a situation like this: “Did you ask him if he was a member of MS-13?”
His answer? No.
Not only did he fail to ask, he then launched into a muddled dodge accusing President Trump of trying to “change the subject.” But it was Van Hollen himself who veered away from the question, refusing to answer directly. Even Dana Bash, no conservative firebrand, was visibly stunned by the non-response. She pressed again—and still, Van Hollen couldn’t or wouldn’t say whether he asked the most obvious question imaginable before defending the man in front of the nation.
.@ChrisVanHollen calls Kilmar Abrego Garcia — an illegal immigrant gang member and CITIZEN OF EL SALVADOR — an “American” pic.twitter.com/5qBYSDsVAP
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 20, 2025
Just incredible.
It didn’t stop there. On ABC, Van Hollen had yet another jaw-dropper. While trying to paint Abrego Garcia as a victim of injustice, he almost called him an American. He caught himself just in time and switched to saying Garcia was “absconded from America”—a statement as legally incoherent as it is factually wrong. Abrego Garcia is not an American. He is a citizen of El Salvador, and Van Hollen is now telling El Salvador’s president what to do with one of his own nationals.
@ChrisVanHollen confirms taxpayers paid for him to fly to El Salvador and sip margaritas with a deported illegal immigrant MS-13 gang member pic.twitter.com/xByXzeRoYi
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 20, 2025
Oh, and who paid for Van Hollen’s political theater abroad? You did. After dodging the question on Fox News, Van Hollen finally admitted that taxpayer dollars funded the trip. First, he called it an “officially cleared congressional trip”—which sounds nice until you realize it means you footed the bill for a sitting U.S. senator to fly down and campaign on behalf of a deported illegal alien with a violent past.
