April 19, 2025
Dear Friends,
Over his three months in office, President Trump has shown nothing but total apathy and disdain for the laws that govern our nation.
Trump's belief that he alone is above the law is one he has vocalized since the days of his first candidacy a decade ago. But the sheer scale and scope of the illegal actions he has taken in the early months of his second term are beyond terrifying.
Few actions demonstrate more callous cruelty than his administration’s wrongful deportation and imprisonment of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia — a father of three children, husband of a U.S. citizen, and a man with no criminal record — who has been held in a Salvadoran prison for more than a month. Despite admitting that Mr. Abrego Garcia’s deportation was an error, Trump and his enforcers have so far ignored all demands to correct their egregious mistake.
Just this week, in a meeting with El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, it was made clear that there are no plans to bring Abrego Garcia home. Let’s be clear: the idea that the Trump administration can do nothing to bring him back is a blatant lie. Trump and his cronies are content to continue sending millions of dollars to a foreign nation so that they can imprison individuals who were never given any due process of law and in open defiance of court orders.
This defiance of the law extends beyond this administration’s cruel war on immigrants — it extends to anyone who seeks to oppose Trump’s authoritarian rule. This includes his campaign against lawyers and law firms who have dared to stand up to him in court. His motivation for going after these firms is based entirely on personal grievances and perceived slights, as he chooses to attack law firms that have taken on cases or causes he disagrees with, supported his political opponents, or hired lawyers critical of him. This campaign of vengeance may be a personal one for the President, but its impact damages the foundational ideals that have defined and steered our nation for centuries.
When Trump attacks law firms who don’t cut deals with him, he undermines the integrity of the entire legal profession.
When he ignores court orders and goes after judges who disagree with him, he erodes the system of checks and balances set up in our Constitution.
When he rips immigrant parents away from their kids and ships them off to foreign prisons without due process, he calls into question whether any perceived opponents of this administration — even American citizens — can have their civil liberties revoked.
Indeed, Trump’s own words confirm that he has no plans to stop with people like Mr. Abrego Garcia. In that same meeting with President Bukele, Trump went so far as suggesting that more prisons be built so that he can send American 'criminals’ to El Salvador.
This is not a drill. The authoritarian crackdown so many of us warned of is already here. But, for the sake of our democracy, we will not and cannot quietly allow these attacks against our neighbors, our communities, and our system of laws to continue. We must learn from the lessons of our past. We must remember the countless civilians, journalists, judges, and advocates who pushed back against the unconstitutional actions of President Andrew Johnson — who called for violence against his political enemies and worked to solidify white supremacy — and of President Richard Nixon — who infamously stated, “when the president does it, that means it is not illegal.”
This is far from the first time authoritarianism has threatened our nation. Democracy demands that we remain vigilant and united to protect it. At the Constitutional Convention of 1787, one observer asked Benjamin Franklin whether the founders had created a republic or a monarchy. Franklin replied, “A republic, if you can keep it.”
We owe it to our democracy and to each other to continue to stand up, speak up, and show up. We can succeed in keeping our republic, so long as we remember that the ties that bind us together are stronger than those that seek to tear us apart.
As always, thank you for reading.
Your friend,
DID YOU KNOW?
My office and I are working to make sure you remain informed with the latest updates, announcements, and recommendations from governments and agencies. With that in mind, here is some information that may be of interest to you:
As Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and their GOP allies continue to destroy the rule of law and slash the essential services that the American people rely on, I want to hear directly from you about how these cuts are impacting you and your family — and I want to let you know how I’m fighting back.
That’s why I’m inviting you to join me for another Town Hall on Wednesday, April 23rd at the Saratoga Springs High School Auditorium, located at 1 Blue Streak Boulevard, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866.
Doors will open at 5:00 PM and the event will begin at 6:00 PM.
Pre-registration is required for all attendees to enter the venue. Spaces are limited, so please click this link to reserve your spot today.
If you are unable to attend the event in person, you can view the event in full via the live stream on my YouTube channel.
If you have any questions or need assistance with any federal agencies, policies, or services, please don’t hesitate to contact my office.
