Two House Democrats are asking for permission to travel to El Salvador to conduct “welfare checks” on illegal aliens deported by the Trump administration, including an alleged MS-13 gang member now held at the country’s notorious maximum-security prison. Reps. Robert Garcia (D-CA) and Maxwell Alejandro Frost (D-FL) made the request in a letter to House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY).
The pair wants the committee to authorize a Congressional Delegation (CODEL) visit to the Centro de Confinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT) prison in Tecoluca, El Salvador, where the deportees were taken. The facility is known globally for its harsh conditions and is central to El Salvador’s war on gang violence.
Garcia and Frost specifically named two deportees they want to check on: 29-year-old Kilmar Abrego Garcia, accused of being a member of the violent MS-13 gang, and 30-year-old Andry José Hernandez, whom they describe as a “LGBTQ makeup artist” with a pending asylum case in the U.S. Both were deported in a mass removal effort ordered by President Donald Trump’s administration.
In their letter, the lawmakers argue that congressional oversight is warranted after President Trump recently indicated his interest in expanding the use of foreign detention facilities like CECOT to include even American citizens found guilty of violent crime. They claim their visit would ensure humane treatment and observe prison conditions.
The Democrats added that they would welcome Republican colleagues to join the trip and emphasized that the Senate has already approved a similar delegation. Their request comes as Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) leads a Senate delegation to El Salvador with the same goal of meeting with deported individuals like Abrego Garcia.
The Trump administration has strongly defended the deportation efforts, arguing that removing criminal aliens—especially those with ties to violent gangs—is essential for national security. Administration officials have criticized efforts to return such individuals to the U.S. or challenge their removal.
