Disappearing Americans

State-sponsored exile, redefined citizenship, and the machinery of control.

This week, President Trump sat in the Oval Office beside El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele and made one of the most alarming statements of his second term: "The homegrowns are next." That wasn't just an offhand remark. It was deliberate and deeply revealing.

I've worked in the rooms where these conversations happen. I know how this administration talks behind closed doors. When Trump uses the word "homegrown," he's not pulling it out of thin air. That kind of language signals internal planning is already in motion. It's the next step in a rhetorical evolution we've seen before: "domestic terrorists," "traitors," "treason." Words chosen to justify extreme actions. Words that blur the line between political dissent and national security threats.

Trump doesn't throw around words like "homegrown" lightly. Moments later, in that same press conference, he linked "homegrown criminals" to the very Americans he's suggesting could be sent to prison in a foreign country. In his worldview, terms like homegrown, criminals, and domestic threats appear to be interchangeable. And once you've been labeled this way, the constitutional protections you're entitled to as an American begin to disappear.

This is the same man who told the Proud Boys to "stand back and stand by" during his first term. He knows exactly what and who he's saying it to.

What we're witnessing is a clear pattern of escalation. Just last week, Trump invoked "treason" in an executive order targeting former DHS official Miles Taylor, a Republican who served in his administration. That same day, he issued another order against Chris Krebs, accusing him of "weaponizing his authority" and stripping him—and even his current colleagues—of their security clearances.

Their real offense? Telling the truth.

Then came the press conference with Bukele, where Trump floated the idea of deporting "homegrown" Americans. Let's be clear: the term "homegrown" has long been used in national security to imply domestic radicalization. And sitting near Trump was Attorney General Pam Bondi, who didn't hesitate to double down. When asked about the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident mistakenly removed under the Alien Enemies Act, Bondi asserted, without evidence, that he was an MS-13 gang member and "illegally in the country." Yet court records tell a different story: in 2019, a judge denied Abrego Garcia's bond based on an informant's statement, but a 2025 federal court found the government had "offered no evidence linking Abrego Garcia to MS-13 or to any terrorist activity."

Bondi's presence wasn't incidental; it was strategic. Her appearance made clear that this wasn't just a reckless comment from Trump. It was policy, backed by the country's top legal official. She's not just part of the show; she's there to help implement the script.

Stephen Miller followed up by chastising CNN's Kaitlan Collins for daring to question the deportation, calling it "arrogant" to even ask if the U.S. should request his return. Marco Rubio, now Secretary of State, reinforced the message, claiming El Salvador is simply where Abrego Garcia "belongs."

And here's the key point: despite a Supreme Court ruling ordering the U.S. to facilitate Abrego Garcia's return, the Trump administration has refused to comply. Their position? That foreign policy overrides the authority of the courts.

This is the pattern: speak out, and you're labeled disloyal. Get in their way, and you're cast as a criminal. Dissent is no longer disagreement. It's being redefined as treason. It's being recoded as terrorism. You don't have to connect many dots here. The logic is unfolding in plain sight. Critics become traitors. Dissent becomes terrorism. Americans become enemies of the state. And if you're a legal permanent resident, or even a citizen with the wrong name, wrong politics, or wrong profile, you may be next in line. This isn't just a shift in language; it's a signal of where the machinery is headed.

There is no legal justification for deporting U.S. citizens. Natural-born Americans are protected by the Constitution, including the right to due process, legal counsel, and judicial review. The fact that this administration is floating the idea anyway tells you everything you need to know about how far they're willing to go.

This isn't incompetence. This is intention. It's happening by design, Stephen Miller's design, a deliberate plan to sidestep the legal system and weaponize immigration law against U.S. citizens. It's an extremist blueprint masquerading as policy.

CECOT: The Outsourced Black Site

CECOT, El Salvador's mega-prison, has been condemned internationally for torture, starvation, indefinite detention, and public humiliation. That is where Trump now suggests American citizens could be sent potentially with no legal process, accountability, or oversight. The U.S. has reportedly paid El Salvador $6 million to accept deportees. We're not just turning a blind eye; we're bankrolling it.

Kilmar Abrego Garcia's case isn't an outlier, it's the dryrun. As a Maryland resident and legal U.S. resident, he was wrongfully deported to El Salvador. The Supreme Court ordered his return. The Trump administration ignored it. Bukele refused.

So here's the question: Will Chief Justice John Roberts do anything about this blatant defiance of the Court? Or are we now in a moment when the judicial branch is overruled by executive muscle and authoritarian ambition? If this is allowed to stand, the consequences will reach far beyond immigration; they will strike at the core of judicial legitimacy and constitutional balance.

I've seen this pattern before from the inside. This isn't just about immigration. It's about control. 

First, label people "illegals." 

Then, "domestic threats." 

Then, "homegrowns." 

The goal is simple: strip away protections, normalize extreme responses, and intimidate anyone who resists.

Guantanamo Bay became a symbol of indefinite detention and the erosion of human rights. We spent years trying to distance ourselves from it. Now Trump is reanimating that model, just outsourced. No trials. No oversight. No limits. And if we start sending Americans to foreign black sites, we're not just abandoning our values; we're surrendering moral leadership on the global stage. There's no treaty, legal framework, or Geneva protections, just a backroom handshake between leaders who thrive on unchecked power.

CECOT is not a safe or just facility. Yet, the U.S. government is now sending people there sometimes without confirming they've even committed a crime. This is state-sponsored disappearance, plain and simple.

Trump's word choice isn't accidental. It's revealing. "Homegrown." "Treason." "Monsters." "Retribution." These aren't policy terms. They are terms of psychological, political, and legal warfare against anyone the administration deems a threat. We're watching it unfold, not just as immigration enforcement but as a full-blown framework for governing through fear and executive overreach.

Mark my words: it's not just about deportations. It's about redefining who counts as American and who doesn't. This isn't just about one man. This is about what the Trump administration is preparing to do more broadly.

If you're falsely accused...if you criticize the president... if you end up on the wrong list...Will you be next?

Because this isn't just political bluster anymore, it's policy. It's intent. And they're daring us to stop them. If this stands, if Americans can be exiled without trial, silenced with threats of treason, and erased into foreign prisons, then we are no longer a nation of laws. We are something else entirely.

Now is the time to speak up. Not later. Not after more families are shattered. Not after more Americans vanish behind bars in countries with no due process. Because if we don't stop it now, it will get worse. And when that day comes, none of us will be able to say we weren't warned.

More very soon…

Olivia

P.S. I’m excited to share that I’ll be joining The Jim Acosta Show tonight for their first live event of the No Fear Tour in New York City! The event is sold out, but you can stream it live on Substack at 6:00pm ET. Stay tuned for updates, and I hope you’ll tune in for a powerful evening with an incredible lineup. I’m truly honored to share the stage with this group.