U.S. Congressman Riley Moore says he doesn’t regret social media post following visit to El Salvador prison

By Autumn Shelton, RealWV

On April 15, U.S. Congressman Riley Moore, of West Virginia’s second district, posted an image of himself on social media touring CECOT prison in El Salvador – the mega-prison that is serving as the holding location for U.S. deportees as part of President Trump’s immigration crackdown. That photo of Congressman Moore, standing in front of a cell packed with deportees, has received major attention. 

“I just toured the CECOT prison in El Salvador,” Moore’s post begins. “This maximum security facility houses the country’s most brutal criminals, including murderers, rapists, pedophiles, and terrorists. Several inmates were extremely violent criminals recently deported from the U.S.”

The post continues, “I leave now even more determined to support President Trump’s efforts to secure our homeland.” 

The feedback from those throughout West Virginia, both supporters and critics, was immediate. 

On April 16, West Virginia Delegate and Chair of the state’s Democratic Party, Mike Pushkin, made his own social media post where he said that Moore “flew down to El Salvador on your dime to pose for selfies in front of inmates in a prison.” 

https://www.facebook.com/reel/646744461479573

Pushkin went on to say that CECOT is the current location of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who is at the center of an intense nationwide legal discussion on immigration and due process. 

Brief background on Kilmar Abrego Garcia

According to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court of Maryland, Garcia, 29, was mistakenly deported from the U.S. to El Salvador (where he is a citizen) on March 15. Garcia was living in Maryland at the time of his deportation. 

However, in 2019, prior to his deportation, Garcia was granted a withholding of removal – a legal protection that prevents him from being removed from the U.S. on the grounds that he would have faced persecution if he were to return to his home country. 

In this case, court documents state that Garcia left El Salvador when he was 16 years old in an effort to flee from gang violence. 

In March, ICE agents arrested Garcia and questioned him about possible gang involvement after they received information from a confidential informant that he was an “active member of MS-13 with the Westerns clique.” Garcia stated that he has no involvement with “Tren de Aragua, MS-13, or any other criminal or street gang,” court documents state. 

“Abrego Garcia has never been arrested or charged with any crime in the U.S. or in El Salvador. There is no known link or association between him and the MS-13 gang,” court documents continue. 

Despite Garcia’s withholding of removal, his insistence that he is not affiliated with gang activity, and the fact that his deportation was cited as an “administrative error,” he was deported to CECOT – a prison that has received attention from human rights organizations due to its overcrowding and treatment of prisoners. 

A very brief back and forth explanation

After Garcia’s deportation, a Maryland federal judge issued an order for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to facilitate Garcia’s “immediate return to the U.S.,” which should have happened on April 7. 

President Trump and those in his administration said “not gonna happen.” 

U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts issued a temporary order pausing the April 7 deadline, and later the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision to have the Trump administration facilitate Garcia’s return. 

President Trump and those in his administration said “not gonna happen.” 

During an oval office meeting between President Trump and El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele on April 14 regarding the court’s order on Garcia’s return to America, President Bukele said “not gonna happen.” 

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during that meeting, “I don’t understand what the confusion is. “This individual is a citizen of El Salvador. He was illegally in the United States and was returned to his country. That’s where you deport people, back to their country of origin . . . the foreign policy of the United States is conducted by the President of the United States – not by a court. And no court in the United States has a right to conduct a foreign policy of the United States. It’s that simple end of story.” 

Back to Congressman Moore

On April 18, Congressman Moore gave an interview on MetroNews’ Talkline where he said he did not regret posting the image of himself at CECOT. 

“I am giving an affirmative gesture that, yes, I think this is working,” Moore said. “I’m supportive of what the President is doing. I’m supportive of what President Bukele is doing. . . .  I know people have found that picture offensive, that was not my intent – to upset people.” 

After being questioned on whether or not Moore regrets posting the image, he responded, “ No. No, I don’t regret posting it. I regret the reaction to it and a lot of the misinformation that’s out there where they think U.S. citizens are being sent to this facility. There’s no U.S. citizens down there. It’s an absolute lie . . . they’re equating this to a gulag or a concentration camp. It’s not any of those things. These folks are getting meals. They do get exercise. But let’s not forget, these are murderers and rapists.”

Court Documents from the Kilmar Abrego Garcia Case:

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Feature image is a screenshot of Congressman Moore’s Facebook post.