Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday confirmed that she instructed the federal government to carry out the deportation and transferring of Venezuelan detainees to El Salvador despite a court order halting the flights.
“The decisions that are made on deportations, where flights go, and when they go are my decision at the Department of Homeland Security,” Noem told NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press.” “And we will continue to do the right thing and ensure that dangerous criminals are removed.”
The Department of Justice (DOJ) last week indicated in court filings that Noem directed officials to continue deportations to a Salvadoran megaprison amid an ongoing review of whether the Trumpadministration could be held in contempt after defying a judge’s oral order seeking the return of more than 100 Venezuelan detainees to the U.S.