President Donald Trump’s advisors said in a meeting with El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele on Monday that the US did not have the authority to return Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident who was wrongly deported to El Salvador.

Attorney General Pam Bondi stated the US Supreme Court order requiring the Trump administration to “facilitate” the return of Abrego Garcia required only that the US provide a plane if El Salvador wished to release Garcia from the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) in El Salvador. White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller reiterated this point, stating that the Supreme Court order determined that Abrego Garcia’s return was at the sole discretion of El Salvador. When asked if he would return Garcia, Bukele responded that he did not have the authority, suggesting it would require him to “smuggle” Garcia into the US.

Garcia was mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March despite a court order from 2019 barring such a deportation because of Garcia’s fear of persecution by the gang Barrio 18. US federal district court Judge Paula Xinis ordered the US on April 4 to “facilitate and effectuate” Abrego Garcia’s return. The Trump administration appealed this order to the Supreme Court, which decided 9-0 on Thursday that the US must facilitate Abrego Garcia’s return. The Supreme Court instructed the district court to clarify the term “effectuate” to ensure the district court gave due deference to the president’s foreign affairs powers. The Supreme Court further stated the US must ensure Abrego Garcia’s case is “handled as it would have been had he not been improperly sent to El Salvador.”

Since the Supreme Court order, the Trump administration has argued that “facilitate” means removing any domestic obstacles that would prevent Garcia’s return. Lawyers for the administration contended that any other interpretation would violate the separation of powers between the judicial and executive branches.

Lawyers for Garcia argued that to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s release, the US should request El Salvador release Abrego Garcia and that the US should send personnel to accompany him, provide air transportation, and take administrative steps to allow his return to the US.

In a subsequent order, Xinis ordered the government to provide daily updates on Garcia’s location and the government’s facilitation efforts. Xinis stated that she imposed this requirement because the Trump administration failed to provide proper updates as previously ordered.