On Monday, President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador met with President Trump in the Oval Office and informed Trump that he had 350 million Americans to “liberate” from the grip of crime and terrorism.
We are aware of the fact that you require assistance with both your crime problem and your terrorist concern. And while our nation is little, we are able to lend a hand,” Bukele stated. “We actually turned the murder capital of the world — that was [what] the journalists called it – the murder capital of the world to the safest country in the Western Hemisphere.”
The remark that Bukele used to celebrate themselves, “And I like to say that we actually liberated millions,” was praised by Trump.
“Mr. President, you have 350 million people to liberate,” Bukele told Trump. “You cannot just, you know, free the criminals and think crime is going to go down magically, you have to imprison them so you can liberate 350 million Americans that are asking for the end of crime and the end of terrorism, and it can be done.”
Along with Bukele, the Trump administration has been arranging deportation flights, transporting hundreds of people to El Salvador’s infamous Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT), among them are accused members of the Tren de Aragua gang.
During his 2024 campaign, Trump criticized liberal bail reform legislation in several Democratic localities that allowed police to release detainees back into the streets, frequently for reoffending, and the catch-and-release border practices implemented by the Biden administration.
On Monday, Trump attacked the “Democratic establishment” and proclaimed that “common sense” will govern the nation going forward following his victory.
Are males permitted to participate in female-only athletic events? Is boxing ladies something you’re okay with? Bringing up the left’s demand for biological males to participate in women’s sports, Trump questioned Bukele.
El Salvador’s president said, “That’s violence.”
It’s abusive against women, Trump acknowledged. “But we have people that fight to the death because they think men should be able to play in women’s sports.”
To prevent males from assaulting women, the women’s rights movement fought for legislation to be passed a decade or so ago, according to Bukele. However, today, she claims, “same people are trying to backtrack.”
By saying, “We’re big on protecting women,” Bukele jokingly referenced the fact that the majority of his Cabinet members in the Oval Office with him are women and joked, “they’re not DEI hires or anything.”
The appointment of Attorney General Pam Bondi, Secretary Kristi Noem of Homeland Security, and Chief of Staff Susie Wiles of the White House were all women championed by Trump in his own Cabinet.
The president referred to Wiles as “the most powerful woman in the world, according to magazines,” while evaluating her. “I think she probably is.”
Noting that Trump has conveyed a “powerful message of consequences” to deter convicted felons, rapists, killers, gang members, and terrorists from entering the United States, Noem expressed gratitude to Bukele for his cooperation during his recent visit to the CECOT.
President Biden, according to Trump, let individuals “come freely into our country” from South America, Africa, Asia, and “rough parts of Europe,” with many of them coming from gangs, mental facilities, and jails.
Former President Joe Biden “permitted this because he did something absolutely unbelievable” to our nation, Trump remarked of Biden. “Thus, we are resolving the matter. They’re going to be released. But the damage they and that party inflicted on our nation—open borders, allowing anyone to come in—was immense. The moment I heard that, my first thought was, “Our country is going to flush out every prison.” Yes, it is correct. And we’re working to resolve the issue.
When asked about the number of illegal immigrants his administration would send to El Salvador, Trump responded, “as many as we can get out of our country that were allowed in here by incompetent Joe Biden through open borders.”
Trump said that Bondi and the Justice Department were still “studying the law” on the possibility of sending American citizens or fully naturalized immigrants to El Salvador for prosecution of serious crimes committed in the United States. However, he did not rule out the possibility of doing so.
“They’re just as terrible as everybody else that shows up. Bad ones also happen to us. We can do things with the president for less money and with better security, so I’m all for that,” Trump added. “I’m talking about really bad people.”