Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen’s meeting with wrongly deported Kilmar Abrego Garcia garnered international headlines, but it has also made him the target of Republican officials like Georgia Rep. Mike Collins.
On Friday night, Collins posted an image showing the plaque outside Van Hollen’s Senate office reading “El Salvador.” If taken literally, Collins’ post would imply Van Hollen represents El Salvador instead of Maryland in the Senate.
“Hey @ChrisVanHollen, I went ahead and changed your office plaque for you,” Collins wrote on X in a caption accompanying the photo.
Hey @ChrisVanHollen, I went ahead and changed your office plaque for you. pic.twitter.com/jNMKnbCWw3
— Rep. Mike Collins (@RepMikeCollins) April 18, 2025
It was not clear if the image was photoshopped or the sign itself had been physically altered.
Collins’ message has clear parallels with comments made by President Donald Trump and his allies, who have accused Van Hollen and Democrats supporting his trip of prioritizing illegal immigrants over American citizens.
A White House statement Wednesday said Van Hollen was “currently in El Salvador out of concern for an illegal immigrant MS-13 gang member and human trafficker for whom he ‘won’t stop fighting until he’s home.’”
Van Hollen has responded by calling on the Trump administration to prove their claim that Abrego Garcia is a gang member in court.
Abrego Garcia, who entered the U.S. illegally as a teenager, was arrested March 12 in Maryland and deported to El Salvador three days later, despite being granted “withholding of removal” status in 2019 and having legal working papers. He has no criminal record in the U.S. or El Salvador.
In the month between his deportation and Thursday’s meeting with Van Hollen, the senator said Abrego Garcia had no contact with the outside world. He was moved from the notorious CECOT prison to a different prison with better conditions but still lacks the ability to communicate with people outside the facility, Van Hollen said Friday.
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