Lindsay Teslowski
Appearances
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
Thanks for having me.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
That's correct. Names and identities of people have been shared today via a list. And so we know that it is inevitable that our client will be identified. And we feel it's important to let the world know who Andri, our client, is because he is a human being. He is a young professional from Venezuela. He's a makeup artist. He is a gay man.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
He is someone who came to the United States seeking protection. He came seeking asylum. Upon entry into the United States, he was detained because of his tattoos, some of which you can see in those photos, but these are not the tattoos of somebody who is involved with gangs. These are normal tattoos that you would see on anybody at a coffee shop anywhere in the United States or Venezuela.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
And today we have confirmation from the government. One of the few groups or attorneys that have confirmation that our client is indeed in El Salvador. You know, our client last week was supposed to appear in court where we would have started the process of refuting the baseless allegations against him. But we never got to have that chance. Our client has been forcibly removed and disappeared.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
So the only reason we know that our client is in El Salvador is because he was supposed to be in court last Thursday. ICE never presented him. Over the ensuing days, we realized that he was likely part of this group of planes that went to El Salvador. When we went to court on Monday, we were finally told by ICE that it was confirmed he was in El Salvador.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
In that moment, they said that he was removed to El Salvador. The immigration judge said, how is it possible that he's been removed if there's no removal order? And the ICE attorney that was in the courtroom said, I don't know.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
The case has been set over, so we do have a hearing coming up in a couple weeks, but ICE has now told us that they will not facilitate communication with our client because he has, in their words, been removed, and that they will not make him available for that hearing in two weeks. So at this point, we are, of course, watching the case closely that is ongoing related to the Alien Enemies Act.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
And we're pursuing all avenues because our client's life is at risk. We're concerned for his safety. And the fact that he was forcibly taken from the United States with no due process, it's something that really shocks the conscience in a way that we haven't seen since family separation happened in 2018.
The Rachel Maddow Show
Maddow: Trump admin shows folly of blind obedience to someone who doesn't know what they're doing
Thank you.