Republican Sen. John Kennedy says deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia was a 'screw-up'

Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana spoke candidly during an April 20 interview with NBC, saying the deportation of Abrego Garcia was mishandled.

"Look, this was a screw-up in my opinion," Kennedy stated. "The administration won't admit it. But this was a screw-up."

Despite acknowledging the error, he emphasized that it was a singular incident: "I don’t see any pattern here," he said. "I see a screw-up."

Kilmar Abrego Garcia (Photo: https://www.youtube.com/)

Kennedy, however, defended the administration's broader immigration policies.

"I’ve been listening to my Democratic friends say for, I don’t know, since God was a child, that Trump is a threat to democracy. I don’t see any pattern here," he added.

At the same time, he acknowledged the White House’s reluctance to admit fault: "If they do, they’ll have their throats torn out."

Legal confusion and political backlash

Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old living in Maryland, was deported in March after what the White House later described as "an administrative error."

The Supreme Court ruled he should be returned, but Trump officials claim they lack the authority to retrieve him from El Salvador.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt labeled him "an illegal alien, MS-13 gang member and foreign terrorist," despite no charges or convictions on his record. His wife clarified that a temporary protective order she once filed had since been closed.

Democrats have demanded his return, with Sen. Chris Van Hollen visiting El Salvador and calling the case "an illegal abduction." Kennedy pushed back: "Most of this glossy rhetoric is just rage bait," he said.

On Trump’s recent suggestion to send US criminals to prisons abroad, Kennedy strongly disagreed, saying, "We have our own laws… We shouldn’t send prisoners to foreign countries."

Despite bipartisan outrage and legal orders, the Trump administration remains firm, deepening the divide over immigration enforcement and executive accountability.