MSNBC host claims black Americans could be ‘next in line’ to deport after Kilmar Abrego Garcia sent to El Salvador

MSNBC political commentator Symone Sanders-Townsend sparked controversy this week by suggesting that the Trump administration's immigration policies could expand to target everyday black American citizens for deportation.

Speaking on MSNBC, Sanders-Townsend commented on the recent deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a national of El Salvador accused by the Trump administration of being affiliated with the gang MS-13. Sanders-Townsend was deported, although the Trump administration later admitted the deportation was due to an “administrative error.”

Sanders-Townsend framed the case as a warning sign for the potential for the Trump administration round up and deport people of color in the US.

“If they can do it to them, if they can snatch students off the street without any pushback or recourse, they will do it to any of us," she claimed. "To be very clear, it’s going to be the people of color and the vulnerable communities that are next in line.”

The Trump administration has maintained that Abrego Garcia is a member of the violent MS-13 gang and should not be allowed back in the US. The Supreme Court ordered that the Trump administration help to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return, but it is also depended on El Salvador's government. President Nayib Bukele has said that the country will not be returning Abrego Garcia and compared it to smuggling a criminal into the US.

Democrats have continued to blast the Trump administration for its efforts to deport illegal immigrants in the US, particularly those who have committed crimes. Despite condemnation from the left, the majority of voters appear to be satisfied with efforts to bolster border security and deport illegal immigrants.

According to a recent poll by CBS/YouGov, 58 percent of Americans approve of the administration’s program to deport illegal immigrants who are residing in the US.