New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is very upset that a city council employee has been ordered deported and demands that he be released from detention immediately.
Today, an administrative immigration judge ordered the deportation of Rafael Rubio, a City Council employee.
— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) March 18, 2026
This is an affront to justice. A dedicated public servant with legal authorization to remain in the country, Rafael showed up for a routine immigration appointment and,…
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… despite following the rules, he was detained and has now been held for months.
He should be immediately released.
Despite following the rules? Whose rules? More on that in a minute, after New York Attorney General Letitia James weighs in:
This deportation order is outrageous.
— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) March 18, 2026
Rafael Rubio is a @NYCCouncil employee. He is legally permitted to be in the country, but was still met with this unjust detainment at a routine check-in.
He followed the law. He should be released.https://t.co/gB7C3rbfbc
Was he here legally, Zohran? If not, his being here illegally was an affront to justice.
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) March 19, 2026
Have a nice day. :)
What the actual hell are you talking about?
— Matt Van Swol (@mattvanswol) March 18, 2026
He overstayed his visa…
…BY 8 YEARS!!!!!!
Oh, and he also was charged with ASSAULT while in the United States.
Why did you leave these things out of your post????
Sounds like @ICEgov could save a lot of time by just showing up to your City Council meeting
— Extremely Careless (@Shanghaibeast) March 19, 2026
— Spencer (Florida/Man) (@IslandDog) March 19, 2026
He overstayed his visa by 8 YEARS. He did not have work authorization. He is in the country illegally and had previous assault charges..
— Jeffery Mead (@the_jefferymead) March 19, 2026
What are you even talking about? Please be quiet.
What rule was he following when he overstayed his visa? Government employment doesn't allow him to ignore the laws of the land. The sheer entitlement of suggesting otherwise is breathtaking.
— Lisa (@politeracy) March 18, 2026
I am shocked, shocked I say, that you would lie about his legal authorization, conceal his record, and mislead with nearly every word you typed.
— Gerry (@GerryDales) March 18, 2026
He had no legal authorization to work. Whoever cleared him should be fired and investigated.
— Ben Dempsey (@BenDempsey18) March 19, 2026
No one, not even a illegal alien democrat city council employee, is above the law. https://t.co/MMZiMJqJj6
— Madras Trichy (@MadrasTrichy) March 19, 2026
The only affront to justice was him overstaying his visa by 8 YEARS.
— Susan Holden Martin, MBA, J.D. ✨🇺🇸🇮🇱 (@MarsTweep) March 18, 2026
Isn’t that a job for an American citizen?
— HSI Ryan 🇺🇸 (@Shootingbogey) March 19, 2026
You'd think.
If the immigration judge ordered him deported, he wasn't here legally
— Mouse (@MattcomX) March 19, 2026
He had due process and a judge ordered his deportation. Isn’t due process what you all wanted? Or was that just a talking point?
— bondcliff (@bondcliff) March 19, 2026
It certainly sounds like this is justice being served. He'll be released … in another country.
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