Ron Estes

As the standoff between federal courts and the Trump administration intensifies, GOP Rep. Mike Kennedy has remained silent about his trip to El Salvador.

At least two Republican House members and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem have toured the same Salvadoran prison that turned away a Senate Democrat seeking to speak with a mistakenly deported constituent.Why it matters: CECOT in Tecoluca, El Salvador, has become the symbol of President Trump's immigration crackdown after he sent hundreds of Venezuelan immigrants there with little or no due process.Trump has repeatedly raised the prospect of sending American citizens to prisons in El Salvador, recently telling President Nayib Bukele to "build about five more places" during an Oval Office visit.What we're watching: Democrats in both chambers of Congress are working to organize delegations to El Salvador, including Reps. Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) and Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) and Sen Cory Booker (D-N.J.)."Given that the Administration's use of CECOT for illegal and unconstitutional deportations is rife with 'administrative errors' ... I urgently request a CODEL to conduct oversight," Ramirez wrote on Wednesday. Yes, but: House Republican committee chairs have refused to authorize Democrats' requests to lead official congressional delegations to El Salvador. House Homeland Security Committee chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.) said he wouldn't grant Ramirez's request. Van Hollen tries to contact Ábrego GarcíaSen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said on Wednesday and Thursday his requests to see or speak to Kilmar Ábrego García, his mistakenly deported constituent, were denied.Ábrego García was deported to El Salvador in what the Trump administration later said was an "administrative error."The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that Trump must "facilitate" Ábrego García's return, but Bukele said he wouldn't return or release him. Context: Bukele in 2022 ordered the prison be built as part of a response to surging gang violence in El Salvador, per NPR. Each cell can fit 65 to 70 prisoners, and the prison has a capacity of 40,000 inmates. The deported Venezuelan migrants are living in the same conditions as convicted gangsters, prison director Belarmino García told CNN. Visitation, recreation and education are not typically allowed the terrorism confinement center.Republican politicians at CECOTHomeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited the prison in March. "If you come to our country illegally, this is one of the consequences you could face," Noem said in a video standing in front of a packed cell of prisoners. Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.) on Tuesday shared photos of himself at the prison.In a statement, he praised President Trump for the deportations and detentions. Rep. Riley Moore (R-W. Va.) similarly shared photos on Tuesday, including one of him standing in front of a cell posing with thumbs up. "I leave now even more determined to support President Trump's efforts to secure our homeland" he wrote on X. Five other GOP members visited El Salvador, per a photo shared by the U.S. Embassy in El Salvador. However, it doesn't say whether they visited the prison.Those lawmakers are Reps. Claudia Tenney (NY), Mike Kennedy (Utah), Carol Miller (W. Va.), Ron Estes (Kansas) and Kevin Hern (Okla.), per journalist Marisa Kabas.A spokesperson for Miller did not respond to direct questions about the trip. The other representatives' offices did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.The embassy's post, written in Spanish, said the delegation was "visiting the country to strengthen bilateral ties and discuss initiatives that promote economic development and mutual cooperation."Go deeper: Inside Democrats' scramble to travel to El SalvadorTimeline: The case of a Maryland man mistakenly deported to El Salvador

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Voters head to polls on Nov. 5 to decide between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump. The balance of power in Congress all hangs in the balance.

A federal judge said that Rudy Giuliani's bankruptcy has not been officially dismissed because the former New York City mayor has refused to pay administrative expenses — even though he seems to have the funds to do so.In July, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean Lane said he would dismiss the bankruptcy case at the request of Giuliani and two former Georgia election workers, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss. Giuliani had initially declared bankruptcy after a court ordered him to pay Freeman and Moss $148 million for defamation.In a five-page order on Thursday, Lane noted that the order to dismiss the case had not been entered into the court record because Giuliani claimed he could not afford to pay related administrative expenses."The administrative expenses in question are the fees for the financial advisors retained by the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors," the judge's Thursday order said. "What little we know about the Debtor's financial situation makes his stance here more troubling.""Even assuming that the Debtor does not have the funds on hand to immediately pay these bankruptcy expenses, he certainly has considerable assets upon which he can draw to pay such expenses," Lane continued. "It is undisputed that he owns two apartments of considerable value."Giuliani's New York apartment was said to be worth $5.6 million, and his Florida apartment was valued at approximately $3.5 million.EXCLUSIVE: Trump ‘secretary of retribution’ won't discuss his ‘target list’ at RNCLane explained that the "most obvious path forward" would be to hold hearings to determine Giuliani's financial conditions and possibly force him to testify."[T]here may come a point when dismissal is no longer an option because the Debtor is unwilling to pay these administrative expenses, a necessary requirement under the law for dismissal of the case," Thursday's order said. "Under such circumstances, the Court may be forced to reevaluate the alternative of a Chapter 11 trustee to supervise the administration of the Debtor's financial affairs and to promptly liquidate assets such as the New York apartment as appropriate."Lane gave Giuliani and his creditors until July 31 to submit proposals for a path forward.

A GOP strategist unleashed an attack on Kamala Harris that was dripping in sarcasm Thursday after losing his cool over positive media coverage of the Democratic Party’s presumed presidential candidate.Doug Heye was on CNN as the vice president finished a rally speech in Houston. As his co-guest, Democratic Party strategist Maria Cordona, finished praising the candidate’s performance, Heye got flustered.Raising his voice, he said, “Everything we heard is 'Oh my god, Kamala Harris is the greatest thing ever. She's the greatest cook that we've ever had near the Oval Office. She knows more about wine than anybody other than maybe Thomas Jefferson. Everything she does is amazing.'“So we should just cancel the election because clearly she's going to win by 25 points?”He then tried to bring the CNN panel back from what he saw as rose-colored adoration.ALSO READ: ‘Creepy weirdos’: Senator fears Trump WH staff would destroy government from ‘inside’“The reality is, i'm not going to get in Donald Trump's head, don't want to be there, don't know what's in there. But he sees the same polling that we do," he said.“Kamala Harris is marginally less unpopular than Joe Biden. She's not winning in the polls. Maybe that changes in a week or two, or six or eight, but at this point, Donald Trump is still winning despite this barrage of nothing but positive press for Kamala Harris and has been marinated in the public's mind.”Cardona had set him off by suggesting that Trump was “going through a mental meltdown” because of his opponent's popularity.“Not just that she is incredibly accomplished as DA, AG, senator, VP,” she said, “but the fact that she is also very attractive. I mean, I have to say it.“...In addition to that, she's not only a woman, she's a woman of African American Asian descent, daughter of immigrants, Jamaican descent.I mean, it's it's this sort of cauldron of all of the things that Trump has nightmares about every single night.”Watch the video below or click the link here.