The DHS Secretary Kristi Noem sat before a Congressional House hearing, and things got a little heated when Rep. Eric Swalwell asked Noem about a seemingly doctored picture that was held by President Trump.
Secretary Noem was in the House to answer whether her agency is facilitating the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia and two other children who were wrongfully deported. The situation caused quite a row between the Trump administration and the courts, which ended with the Supreme Court ordering his administration to facilitate Garcia’s return. Secretary Noem presented herself in Congress to respond to the House’s questions on what her agency is doing to comply.
The first sign of trouble was when Secretary Noem was forced into a corner debating what “due process” truly means in the context of the Trump administration’s immigration policy. Noem insisted that everyone has due process, but according to their understanding of the law, due process doesn’t necessarily mean one is guaranteed a hearing. Which certainly checks out with Stephen Miller’s latest comments on how the Trump administration is “looking into” revoking habeas corpus.
President Trump has been quite bullish on the handling of the Garcia situation. BBC reports that, according to Trump, Garcia was rightfully deported. Although Trump did say he could reverse the deportation with one phone call. Trump has repeatedly cited Garcia’s supposed involvement with the MS-13 gang, which has roots in El Salvador, as the reason he won’t make that call. He claims he knows this for sure because of a tattoo on Garcia’s knuckles that allegedly spells out MS-13 — a claim dismissed by pretty much everyone outside the Trump administration.
Rep. Eric Swalwell brought a photo of Trump holding the seemingly photoshopped knuckles in the White House. He had one simple question for Kristi Noem: is the photo doctored or not? Secretary Noem was careful with her words, finding various ways to neither deny nor accept that the photo is, indeed, doctored — leading Rep. Swalwell to lose his patience.
BREAKING: DHS Secretary Kristi Noem refuses 5 times to answer whether the image of Abrego Garcia’s hand tattoo is doctored or not doctored.
— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) May 14, 2025
Rep. Eric Swalwell then gets fed up and states: "I have a 7-year-old, a 6-year-old, and 3-year-old. I have a bullshit detector. I’m just… pic.twitter.com/uQ4hb8GlDk
This situation doesn’t reflect kindly on the Trump administration and only serves to make them look more averse to presenting facts and upholding integrity when serving Americans. But perhaps more concerning is that one of the two children deported reportedly has stage 4 cancer — and they’re believed to be U.S. citizens born to families with undocumented status.
The Trump administration has been approaching immigration the same way they approach every sector — rushing decisions and expressing confusion and faux concern when questioned about their adherence to the law.
The Democratic Party itself has also been receiving quite a bit of flak for not playing their role in ensuring the Trump administration is challenged whenever it overreaches. It’s been a slow restructuring, but the Democrats are clearly finding their footing. What remains factual, however, is that the Trump administration has been “sloppy” in how they’ve handled immigration — just as Rep. Seth Magaziner pointed out during the hearing.
Regardless of their legal status, all these people deserve a fair hearing. The country cannot be run based on which photoshopped misinformation reaches Trump on Truth Social.
