The vice chairman of the Democratic National Committee publicly rejected on Sunday findings by courts and police that Kilmar Abrego Garcia was a member of MS-13.
David Hogg, who was recently elected to one of the second-tier posts at the DNC, on Sunday took issue with former Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus suggesting Democrats are MS-13 sympathizers.
“This was not an MS-13 gang member and you damn well know it,” Mr. Hogg said during a panel discussion on ABC “This Week.”
”He was not,” the 25-year-old activist said, without elaborating on how he knew this or rebutting the evidence cited in immigration-court cases.
“The administration admitted this was wrong,” he added. “In America, we have due process, and we are a land of law and order.”
Mr. Preibus shook his head in apparent disbelief.
“Every intel community agency and the White House say he is a member of MS-13,” Mr. Preibus said. “You can’t win this.”
The Trump administration designated Mr. Abrego Garcia an “MS-13 terrorist.”
The Prince George’s County Police Department in Maryland identified Mr. Abrego Garcia as a member based on an informant’s testimony and based on tattoos and clothing that mark one as an MS-13 member.
An immigration court agreed with that finding.
The Trump administration deported him last month under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 despite a judge’s ruling that while he was deportable, he could not be sent back to that country for safety reasons.
Some Democrats have questioned the administration’s claim that Mr. Abrego Garcia was a member of MS-13. Others have accused the Trump administration of trampling on Mr. Abrego Garcia’s due process rights irrespective of any purported gang membership.
