As most students of history know, when John Marshall held that a state had no jurisdiction over Native American territory, Andrew Jackson thumbed his nose at it—a move summed up by the now-apocryphal retort, “John Marshall has made his decision. Now let him enforce it!” Apparently Donald Trump thought he could do the same thing when federal judge Paula Xinis ordered the White House to return wrongfully deported Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the United States.
Well, Xinis hinted--loudly—that she has every intention of enforcing it. In a hearing on Tuesday, Xinis revealed she is considering a motion by Abrego Garcia’s lawyers to hold the White House in contempt.
U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis ordered administration officials to turn over evidence of their efforts to secure the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the U.S. since she first ordered his return, saying the government had shown her "nothing" to date.
Attorneys for Abrego Garcia had asked that the administration be found in contempt of court over its inaction. The judge said she wants to review the evidence the administration submits, which is expected to include sworn depositions, before ruling on the matter.
Lawyers for the Justice Department said that they had complied, and would not hesitate to return him to this country if he came to a port of entry. But Xinis wasn’t buying it. Like almost all of us, she noticed that when Salvadoran dictator Nayib Bukele said it would be “preposterous” to bring Abrego Garcia back, no American officials answered questions about what they were doing to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return. And like almost all of us, Xinis knows that the Supremes effectively ruled 9-0 in favor of Abrego Garcia, not 9-0 in favor of the administration as Trump claims.
So once again, Trump is being stared down by a strong woman. Let’s hope Xinis retains her resolve and actually does hold Trump in contempt if he keeps beating around the bush and doesn’t do anything to end what amounts to a hostage situation.
