WASHINGTON, D.C. — A photo-op featuring tropical drinks, poolside furniture, and a deported U.S. resident has sparked outrage in Washington, as Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland accuses El Salvador’s government of orchestrating a misleading image of his recent meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
The controversy, dubbed “Margaritagate” on social media, unfolded after El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele shared photos of Van Hollen sitting with Abrego Garcia — a Salvadoran national deported from the U.S. despite a court order — in what appeared to be a relaxed, resort-like setting.
The images included margarita-style drinks garnished with maraschino cherries, raising questions about the intent behind the optics.
“Nobody drank any margaritas — or sugar water or whatever it is,” Van Hollen said in a press conference Friday at Dulles International Airport. “This was stagecraft designed to deceive people about what actually happened.”
According to Van Hollen, the drinks were not present when he and Abrego Garcia first sat down at the hotel restaurant for a private discussion. Instead, he claims, Salvadoran officials placed them on the table during the half-hour meeting, after the conversation had begun.
“They want to create this appearance that life was just lovely for Kilmar,” said the Democratic senator.
In a post to X (formerly Twitter), President Bukele mocked the criticism:
“Kilmar Abrego Garcia, miraculously risen from the ‘death camps’ & ‘torture’, now sipping margaritas with Sen. Van Hollen in the tropical paradise of El Salvador!” he wrote, adding a cocktail emoji.
Van Hollen revealed Friday that the Salvadoran government had initially suggested holding the meeting by the pool to reinforce a more relaxed image of Abrego Garcia’s condition. The senator declined and held the meeting indoors at his hotel’s restaurant.
Deportation Controversy
Abrego Garcia, a legal U.S. resident who had been living in Maryland, was deported in March by the Trump administration — despite an immigration court order preventing his removal. The deportation has been acknowledged as a mistake by U.S. officials, and the Supreme Court has called on the administration to facilitate his return.
During the press conference, Van Hollen said Abrego Garcia had been initially held at CECOT, El Salvador’s high-security Terrorism Confinement Center, before being quietly transferred. Van Hollen had attempted to visit the prison but was denied entry — something he now believes happened because Abrego Garcia had already been moved.
“They decided it was not a good look to continue detaining him without access,” Van Hollen said. “He told me he hadn’t spoken to anyone outside prison since he was deported.”
The senator did not clarify where Abrego Garcia was taken following their meeting.
Abrego Garcia’s wife, Jennifer Vasquez Sura, stood silently beside Van Hollen during the news conference, wiping away tears as he spoke about her husband’s desire to contact her.
The incident adds further strain to U.S.–El Salvador relations amid broader immigration debates, and raises new questions about transparency and political image-making in high-stakes diplomatic matters.
