On Monday at a summit for the Foraker Group’s leadership, Sen. Lisa Murkowski was asked, “What do you have to say to people who are afraid or who represent people who are afraid?”
It’s a question that might have been asked to any member of Congress following the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. But now it’s in response to the abuses of power by the authoritarian occupying the White House.
“We are all afraid,” Murkowski replied. After a long pause to gather her thoughts, she acknowledged these are uniquely troubling times. And that she’s “oftentimes very anxious myself about using my voice because retaliation is real.”
That’s how Donald Trump operates. He thrives on people being afraid of him. And he’s prepared to use the power of the presidency to destroy the meaning of liberty for anyone who opposes him.
Murkowski said she’ll continue to speak out. Although she didn’t elaborate about what worries her the most, it’s hard to imagine the deportation case of 25-year-old Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia isn’t weighing heavily on her mind.
Abrego Garcia fled El Salvador in 2011. The immigration judge who presided over his asylum hearing in October 2019 granted him protection from deportation to his home country. Until last month, he lived and worked in Maryland. He has no criminal record.
Then, despite the fact Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was aware of his protected status, he was deported to El Salvador. He’s being held in what U.S. District Court Judge Paula Xinis described as “one of the most notoriously inhumane and dangerous prisons in the world.”
With assists from members of his administration, Trump is lying to the American people about the whole affair. And ignoring the unanimous Supreme Court ruling which directed the administration to facilitate his release “and ensure that his case is handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi fired the attorney who admitted Abrego Garcia was deported because of an “administrative error.” His offense was not “zealously” advancing Trump’s interest in keeping Judge Xinis from learning that truth.
She also claims Abrego Garcia was illegally in the country and argued that two immigration judges determined he was likely a member of the MS-13 gang. However, that was before the asylum hearing judge examined the allegations more thoroughly. The first Trump administration never challenged his ruling.
Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller repeated Bondi’s bold-faced lies. As have Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice-President JD Vance.
Miller even claimed the Supreme Court sided with the administration. And although Solicitor General John Sauer also told the Supreme Court that Abrego Garcia was wrongly deported, Miller accused the attorney Bondi fired of being “a saboteur, a Democrat” who “incorrectly” called the deportation an error in his court filing.
This isn’t an isolated case. The administration also deported more than 300 illegal immigrants to the same prison. They were all denied the opportunity to prove they weren’t members of a Venezuelan-based gang. This week, the judge in that case found probable cause to hold the administration in criminal contempt of court.
In regard to Murkowski’s worry about Trump’s thirst for retaliation, consider the Presential Memoranda he issued last week. It directs Bondi to investigate the head of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency in his first administration. Trump described Christopher Krebs as a “significant bad-faith actor,” then repeated the big lie he told four and a half years ago by claiming Krebs had “falsely and baselessly denied that the 2020 election was rigged and stolen.”
Anyone who isn’t worried about the damage Trump is doing to our country is either not paying attention or is stuck in the rightwing propaganda bubble.
Alaskans who are afraid should feel grateful that we’re represented by an honest, courageous senator like Murkowski. But we can’t expect her to fight this battle alone. Our collective voice must be loud enough to help her convince her timid senate colleagues it’s time they break their silence.
So, if you’ve never spoken out against our government or attended a public demonstration, it’s time to get out there and stand with Murkowski in defense of America’s democracy.
• Rich Moniak is a Juneau resident and retired civil engineer with more than 25 years of experience working in the public sector. Columns, My Turns and Letters to the Editor represent the view of the author, not the view of the Juneau Empire. Have something to say? Here’s how to submit a My Turn or letter.
