Just one day after a federal judge ordered officials to come clean about the controversial deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Trump administration swiftly moved to hit pause—filing a sealed motion on Wednesday to delay court-ordered discovery by seven days.
The move follows a scathing order from U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, who blasted government attorneys for stonewalling efforts to get to the bottom of Abrego Garcia’s deportation. She criticized their vague, generic objections and said their refusal to cooperate looked like a deliberate effort to dodge the court’s demands.
Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran man who had been living in Maryland with his wife and kids, was deported in March to El Salvador—despite a 2019 court order prohibiting that very action. The U.S. government claimed he was affiliated with the gang MS-13, a claim strongly denied by his family and legal team. Even while admitting his removal was a mistake, the administration insists he shouldn’t be allowed back because of that alleged gang connection.
Judge Xinis wasn’t convinced. Earlier this month, she ordered the administration to actively work on bringing Abrego Garcia back to the U.S.—a directive the Supreme Court later unanimously upheld.
Despite this, government lawyers argued on Tuesday that revealing more information about how and why Abrego Garcia was detained could interfere with sensitive diplomatic discussions. In a joint letter with his attorneys, they claimed that his detention, now in El Salvador’s massive CECOT prison, is no longer their legal responsibility.
Lawyers for Abrego Garcia didn’t hold back, accusing the administration of producing no meaningful documents and giving vague, unhelpful responses. Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Ore., who recently traveled to El Salvador, said her delegation was even denied a chance to meet with Abrego Garcia while there—raising further concerns about transparency in the case.
With the legal pressure mounting, all eyes are now on Judge Xinis and whether she’ll allow the Trump administration more time—or demand answers, once and for all.
