Rubio Denies Claims of US Citizen Children Deported Without Due Process

Multiple reports emerged alleging that three young U.S. citizen children, including one with stage IV cancer, were deported from Louisiana to Honduras alongside their undocumented mothers. The Trump administration, represented by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and border czar Tom Homan, denied directly deporting the children, asserting that only the mothers were deported and that the children accompanied them by parental choice. Rubio called the headlines misleading, emphasizing that U.S. citizen children retain the right to return if a guardian in the U.S. can assume their care. However, a Trump-appointed federal judge expressed concern over the lack of 'meaningful process' for the children, particularly when the father of a two-year-old sought to keep her in the U.S. but was reportedly blocked by officials. Lawyers for the families argued that the mothers were not given sufficient opportunity to contact attorneys, and that the deportations occurred despite pending legal actions. The administration maintained that due process was followed and that parental decisions, rather than government force, determined the children's departure.