{"id":2423473,"date":"2025-04-14T17:52:02","date_gmt":"2025-04-14T21:52:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/el-salvadors-bukele-cements-role-as-maga-darling-with-deportation-partnership-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2025-04-14T17:54:05","modified_gmt":"2025-04-14T21:54:05","slug":"el-salvadors-bukele-cements-role-as-maga-darling-with-deportation-partnership-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/el-salvadors-bukele-cements-role-as-maga-darling-with-deportation-partnership-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"El Salvador\u2019s Bukele cements role as MAGA darling with deportation partnership &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fel-salvadors-bukele-cements-role-as-maga-darling-with-deportation-partnership-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2423473&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the growing partnership between El Salvador&#8217;s President Nayib Bukele and former President Donald Trump, highlighting their recent meeting at the White House. They have developed a mutually beneficial relationship: Bukele sees the alliance as a way to improve El Salvador\u2019s international image and attract investment, while Trump benefits politically from the message of strong immigration control, particularly through the deportation of gang members to El Salvador.<\/p>\n<p>During their meeting, Trump and Bukele expressed mutual admiration, focusing on their shared goal of combating crime and gang activity. Their collaboration includes sending deported Salvadoran gang members to a supermax prison in El Salvador, which allows the U.S. to reduce the cost of housing inmates while sending a deterrent message to potential illegal immigrants.<\/p>\n<p>However, the partnership raises concerns regarding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/just-like-the-good-old-days-joe-biden-invades-syria-with-convoy-of-us-troops-and-choppers-on-first-full-day-as-president\/\" title=\"Just Like the Good Old Days: Joe Biden Invades Syria with Convoy of US Troops and Choppers on First Full Day as ...\">human rights abuses<\/a> in Salvadoran prisons, where significant numbers of individuals have been detained without proper legal processes. Despite these issues, Trump\u2019s governance seems to prioritize the financial aspects and political optics of this partnership over <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/saudi-court-jails-womens-rights-activist-posing-challenge-for-biden\/\" title=\"Saudi ... jails women\u2019s rights activist, posing challenge for Biden\">human rights violations<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>bukele\u2019s administration has come under scrutiny for its authoritarian tendencies, including mass detentions and a focus on consolidating power, which <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">contrasts wiht democratic principles<\/a>. Nonetheless, Trump appears supportive of Bukele, who has called himself a &#8220;philosopher king&#8221; and is seen as a part of his broader vision for strong, authoritarian leadership.<\/p>\n<p>the article portrays a complex relationship between Trump and bukele, rooted in their shared interests in immigration control and security, while raising serious questions about human rights and governance in El Salvador.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">El Salvador&rsquo;s Bukele cements role as MAGA darling with deportation partnership<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2091738\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>The long-running friendship between MAGA World and Salvadoran President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/nayib-bukele\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Nayib Bukele\">Nayib Bukele<\/a> was upheld Monday at the White House.<\/p>\n<p>Bukele has met members of President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Donald Trump\">Donald Trump<\/a>&lsquo;s inner circle multiple times over the years. Most recently, former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, Trump&rsquo;s former attorney general nominee, met with the Salvadoran president over the weekend ahead of his visit to the White House on Monday.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3379987\/white-house-rescissions-package-cuts-1-billion-from-pbs-8-billion-from-usaid\/\">White House rescissions package cuts $1.1 billion from PBS, $8.3 billion from USAID<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3380115\/jd-vance-trophy-white-house-event-ohio-state\/\">JD Vance drops trophy at White House event honoring Ohio State<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3379900\/white-house-blocks-associated-press-from-oval-office-against-court-ruling\/\">White House blocks AP from Oval Office despite <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-blocks-ap-from-oval-office-despite-court-ruling-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"... blocks AP from Oval Office despite ... ruling - Washington Examiner\">court ruling granting access<\/a><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>While the leader of a central American nation with a population of just 6 million would seem like an unlikely ally for Trump, the pair have formed a symbiotic relationship, according to Cornell University professor Gustavo Flores-Macias.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;For President Trump, the ability to send deportees to El Salvador&rsquo;s maximum-security prison sends a very strong message to people considering entering the U.S. illegally that the consequences could be dire, which serves as a major deterrent,&rdquo; Flores-Macias said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;For President Bukele, the close relationship with President Trump has provided a major platform to showcase his government&rsquo;s ability to turn one of the most dangerous countries into the safest in the western hemisphere, which is expected to bring tourism and investment to the Central American country,&rdquo; he added.<\/p>\n<p>Trump and Bukele exchanged pleasantries during the highly anticipated meetup, with each praising the other&rsquo;s virtues.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s an honor to be here in the Oval Office with the president and leader of the free world,&rdquo; Bukele, 43, said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re very happy, and we&rsquo;re very eager to help. We know that you have a crime problem, a terrorism problem that you need help with. We&rsquo;re a small country, but if we can help, we will do it.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>After <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3378885\/el-salvador-president-nayib-bukele-arrives-dc-trump-visit\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"arriving in Washington D.C. on Sunday\">arriving in Washington, D.C., on Sunday<\/a>, Bukele earned the coveted honor of being the first president of a Latin American country to visit the White House during Trump&rsquo;s second term.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s an honor to have you,&rdquo; Trump said in return. &ldquo;We appreciate working with you because you want to stop crime and so do we. And it&rsquo;s very effective. I want to say hello to the people of El Salvador. They have one hell of a president.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Still, while calling the meeting a &ldquo;PR win for both presidents&rdquo; that is sure to get the attention of other leaders in the Latin world, Flores-Macias warned that reports of human rights abuses inside Salvadoran prisons should be taken seriously.<\/p>\n<p>Those concerns don&rsquo;t seem to be top of mind for the Trump administration. Ahead of the visit, Trump posted a hype video to Truth Social showcasing alleged Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gang members being locked up in the prison.<\/p>\n<p>    <iframe src=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/@realDonaldTrump\/114333875444620545\/embed\" class=\"truthsocial-embed truthsocial-video\" style=\"max-width: 100%; border: 0\" width=\"600\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script src=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/embed.js\" async=\"async\"><\/script>    <\/p>\n<p>The meeting also came as the White House was ordered to facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland man they &ldquo;mistakenly&rdquo; deported to El Salvador. Bukele has agreed to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/el-salvadors-nayib-bukele-arrives-in-dc-ahead-of-white-house-visit-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"...s Nayib Bukele arrives in DC ahead of ... visit - Washington Examiner\">accept alleged gang member migrants deported<\/a> from the United States, having so far locked up more than 250 in a notorious prison located just outside the capital city of San Salvador.<\/p>\n<p>But during the meeting, Bukele said it would be &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3379287\/salvadoran-president-nayib-bukele-declines-return-mistakenly-deported-maryland-man\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"preposterous\">preposterous<\/a>&rdquo; for him to return Garcia to the U.S. despite a unanimous Supreme Court ruling.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;How can I smuggle a terrorist into the United States?&rdquo; Bukele <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3379287\/salvadoran-president-nayib-bukele-declines-return-mistakenly-deported-maryland-man\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"said\">said<\/a>, adding that he wouldn&rsquo;t release him from prison either. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t have the power to return him to the United States.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Trump interjected to claim the media &ldquo;would love it.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;These are sick people,&rdquo; the president said. Members of Trump&rsquo;s Cabinet, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, described the Supreme Court ruling as a victory and said it did not compel them to take action because the court has no jurisdiction over a foreign country.<\/p>\n<p>Bukele has called himself a &ldquo;philosopher king&rdquo; and even &ldquo;the coolest dictator in the world.&rdquo; Both men have pledged to crack down on gang activity in their respective countries and are now working together toward that end.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"youtube-embed\" data-video_id=\"UkZi5Slsau0\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"President Trump Participates in a Bilateral Meeting with the President of El Salvador\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UkZi5Slsau0?feature=oembed&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>According to Human Rights Watch, Bukele&rsquo;s administration has detained 85,000 people in El Salvador, though only 1,000 have been convicted of crimes, raising concerns over wrongful imprisonments. A similar dynamic is now playing out in the U.S.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Since taking office in 2019, Bukele&rsquo;s administration has systematically dismantled democratic institutions and concentrated power in the executive branch,&rdquo; a Human Rights Watch analysis of El Salvador <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hrw.org\/world-report\/2025\/country-chapters\/el-salvador\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"reads\">reads<\/a>. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;A state of emergency enacted in March 2022 remains in effect, suspending constitutional rights. Authorities have committed widespread abuses, including mass arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, torture and ill-treatment of detainees, and due process violations.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The White House, meanwhile, sees the El Salvador relationship as a way to save money on the cost of housing inmates. <\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;If [President Bukele] can take these horrible criminals for less money than it costs us, I&rsquo;m in&mdash;but I only do things in accordance with the law,&rdquo; Trump said on April 7.<\/p>\n<p>White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said last week that Trump and Bukele &ldquo;will discuss El Salvador&rsquo;s partnership on using their supermax prison for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/crime\/3137565\/what-is-tren-de-aragua-venezuelan-gang-running-amok-colorado\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Tren de Aragua<\/a> and MS-13 gang members and how El Salvador&rsquo;s cooperation with the United States has become a model for others to work with this administration.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>For Bukele, the arrangement is financially lucrative as well. The government of El Salvador has received $6 million for taking deportees, which Bukele described as &ldquo;a very low fee for them, but a high one for us.&rdquo;&nbsp;The State Department has also <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/world\/3374499\/us-lowers-el-salvador-travel-advisory-lowest-level-1\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">downgraded its travel advisory<\/a> on El Salvador to the lowest level, which Bukele called the &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/nayibbukele\/status\/1909707756682015197\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">U.S. State Department&rsquo;s travel gold star<\/a>.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>White House homeland security adviser Stephen Miller told reporters Monday morning that keeping the gang members in the U.S. would cost 100 times more than it costs to house them in El Salvador, and asserted that the Trump administration had already saved thousands of lives through aggressive its deportation measures and shutting down of the U.S.-Mexico border.<\/p>\n<p>The White House released a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.whitehouse.gov\/articles\/2025\/04\/no-safe-harbor-for-illegal-immigrant-criminals-under-president-trump\/\" title=\"fact sheet\">fact sheet<\/a> Monday morning listing names of &ldquo;cold-blooded criminals&rdquo; who have been deported to the country, indicating that it continues to see the prison deportations as a bragging point.<\/p>\n<p>Yet other controversies have also followed Bukele during his tenure leading El Salvador. He has been <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/opinion\/el-salvadors-bukele-is-a-china-ally-foreign-policy-trade-latin-america-181ece4b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"criticized\">criticized<\/a> for his close ties to China at the expense of Taiwan, with China opening a flashy new library, fishing pier and amusement park in the country two years ago as a &ldquo;gift&rdquo; to the country.<\/p>\n<p>Bukele also stands accused of violating El Salvador&rsquo;s constitution when he sought reelection, which is normally banned for the country&rsquo;s presidents. <\/p>\n<p style=\"text-transform:uppercase\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/white-house\/3373251\/culture-clash-new-right-future-coexist-post-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"Clash of cultures: Can the New Right coexist with the old &mdash; and with itself?\">Clash of cultures: Can the New Right coexist with the old &mdash; and with itself?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>None of that appears to bother Trump, who has built a relationship with Bukele over several years. The two met in 2019, during Trump&rsquo;s first term, when Bukele <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-elsalvador-migration-un-idUSKBN1WB2UM\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"asked\">asked<\/a> for the administration to maintain Temporary Protected Status for Salvadorians. That wish was later <a href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/politics\/story\/2019-10-28\/trump-administration-extends-tps-for-salvadorans-allowing-thousands-to-stay-in-u-s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"granted\">granted<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Bukele attempted to meet with former President Joe Biden in 2021, arriving unannounced for a meeting, which Biden rebuffed. But now that Trump is back in the White House, Bukele is as well.<\/p>\n<p><em>Mabinty Quarshie contributed to this story<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_2091738\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"2091738\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>El Salvador&#8217;s Bukele strengthens ties with MAGA through deportation deal<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2635,"featured_media":2423474,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/AP25104621065306.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[53449,6184,44880,5656,9342],"class_list":["post-2423473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-bukele","tag-deportation","tag-el-salvador","tag-maga","tag-partnership"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/AP25104621065306.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2423473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2635"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2423473"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2423473\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2423477,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2423473\/revisions\/2423477"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2423474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2423473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2423473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2423473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}