Leavitt: “Maryland Man” Story Wrong — “We Were Always Right”; Border Catch-and-Release Dropped 99.99% from Worst Biden Month

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed the “Maryland Man” media narrative and delivered historic border statistics in an April 2025 briefing. Podcaster Tim Pool, speaking from the new White House media seat, noted: “Many news organizations in this room have marched in lockstep on false narratives — the very fine people hoax, the Covington smear, and now what’s being called the ‘Maryland Man’ hoax, where an MS-13 gang member adjudicated by two judges is simply being referred to as a ‘Maryland man.’” Leavitt responded: “The press in this room have this story wrong. We were always right. The president was always on the right side of this issue.” She then announced that border catch-and-release had “dropped 99.99% from the worst Biden month” — from 189,604 released in December 2023 to just 20 in February 2025.

Tim Pool and the “Maryland Man Hoax”

Tim Pool, seated in the White House briefing room as part of the administration’s expanded media access initiative, raised the issue of media narrative-building.

“Many of these organizations that are represented in this room have marched in lockstep on false narratives,” Pool said, “such as the very fine people hoax, the Covington smear, and now what’s being called the Maryland Man hoax.”

He described the pattern: “An MS-13 gang member adjudicated by two different judges is just simply being referred to as a ‘Maryland man’ over and over again.”

Pool then addressed the media expansion: “In an effort from the White House to expand access to new companies, you’ve created this new media seat. I’m wondering if you can comment on the unprofessional behavior as well as elaborate if there’s any plans to expand access to new companies.”

The “Maryland Man” framing had become a flashpoint in the media wars. Legacy outlets had consistently referred to Kilmar Abrego Garcia — the deported MS-13 member whose case had generated weeks of coverage — as a “Maryland man,” stripping him of his criminal history, gang membership, illegal immigration status, and deportation order. The framing transformed an MS-13 foreign terrorist into an average American neighbor, making his deportation appear to be an act of government overreach against an ordinary citizen.

Pool’s comparison to the “very fine people hoax” and the “Covington smear” was deliberate. Both were media narratives that had been comprehensively debunked but had persisted for years because they served the media’s political agenda. The “Maryland Man” story, Pool argued, was the latest entry in a pattern of coordinated media deception.

”We Were Always Right”

Leavitt delivered the administration’s definitive response.

“We certainly welcome diverse viewpoints in this room, which is one of the reasons we have you in here,” Leavitt said to Pool. “And there’s many new faces in this room in comparison to the previous administrations.”

She continued: “We want to welcome all viewpoints into this room. We welcome unbiased journalists who really care about the truth and the facts and the accuracy.”

She addressed the Maryland Man story directly: “You rightfully pointed out the Maryland Man story, which, from this podium — when the Atlantic published it on that very first day — I came to this podium and said this is wrong.”

She stated the conclusion: “The press in this room have this story wrong. And we have seen more and more evidence come to the table that we have been right all along. We were always right.”

She affirmed the policy: “The president was always on the right side of this issue to deport this illegal criminal from our community.”

She condemned the media’s framing: “And it is despicable to see the media continue to refer to this individual as someone who is just a peaceful man living his life in Maryland.”

She stated the facts: “This was and always has been an illegal criminal, an MS-13 gang member, and a designated foreign terrorist, and the administration maintains our position to deport these individuals from our community.”

Leavitt’s “we were always right” declaration was the press secretary drawing a line under weeks of media coverage that had portrayed the administration as having made a mistake. The Atlantic had published a sympathetic profile of Garcia as a “Maryland man” torn from his family. Other outlets had followed with similar framings. Now, as more evidence of Garcia’s MS-13 membership and criminal history emerged, the media’s narrative was collapsing — and Leavitt was ensuring the record reflected who had been right from the beginning.

Historic Border Numbers

Leavitt pivoted to border statistics that told a dramatic story.

“The Wall Street Journal captured the Trump effect in a recent article: ‘Border Crossings Grind to a Halt as Trump’s Tough Policies Take Hold,’” Leavitt said. “U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded its lowest Southwest border crossings in history in March.”

She expanded to the northern border: “We’re seeing the same successes at our northern border. The New York Post put it: ‘Northern border sector previously overrun by illegal migrants sees dramatic drop in crossings — we haven’t seen anyone since November.’”

She provided specific data: “According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, just 54 illegal aliens were apprehended in the Swanton sector of our northern border, which stretches more than 300 miles, in March. This is a drastic 95% drop from the more than a thousand border crossings that were caught in March 2024.”

She noted: “This was a main hotspot area that recorded more than 80% of all apprehensions along the northern border during the 2024 fiscal year.”

The Swanton sector statistic was particularly striking. A 300-mile stretch of northern border that had been a major illegal crossing point under Biden was now seeing 54 apprehensions per month — roughly two per day across 300 miles. The sector that had accounted for over 80% of northern border arrests was now effectively quiet.

”99.99% Drop”

Leavitt saved the most devastating statistic for the close.

“New reporting from the Washington Times fully highlights the difference in Joe Biden’s disgraceful approach to the border compared to President Trump’s,” she said.

She delivered the number: “Under Trump, border catch-and-release has dropped 99.99% from the worst Biden month. You can’t get much better than that.”

She provided the raw data: “Border Patrol agents caught and immediately released 189,604 illegal aliens into the United States in December 2023, at the height of the Biden border crisis.”

The comparison: “But under President Trump, Border Patrol agents caught and released only 20 illegal aliens into the U.S. in the month of February.”

She concluded: “Thanks to President Trump, operational control of the border is becoming a reality and the administration’s historic enforcement measures are yielding huge results. Illegal aliens are finally getting the blunt message: if you cross the border illegally, you will be swiftly deported and never return to the United States.”

The 99.99% reduction was not a rounding convenience — it was mathematically accurate. Going from 189,604 catch-and-release events to 20 was a reduction of 99.989%. Under Biden, the border had functioned as an open door: agents would catch illegal crossers and immediately release them into the interior with a court date years in the future. Under Trump, that practice had been virtually eliminated. Twenty releases in an entire month — compared to nearly 190,000 — represented a complete transformation of border operations.

The New Media Landscape

Pool’s presence in the briefing room — and Leavitt’s warm reception of his question — illustrated the administration’s deliberate strategy of expanding media access beyond legacy outlets. The traditional briefing room had been dominated by the same networks and newspapers for decades. The Trump White House was creating seats for podcasters, independent journalists, and new media companies whose audiences often dwarfed those of legacy competitors.

The “unprofessional behavior” Pool referenced — legacy journalists disparaging the new media entrants — revealed the establishment media’s discomfort with competition. Reporters who had enjoyed monopolistic access to the White House for years were now sharing space with content creators who reached larger audiences and who did not share their ideological assumptions.

Key Takeaways

• Leavitt on the “Maryland Man” narrative: “The press have this story wrong. We were always right. This was always an MS-13 gang member and designated foreign terrorist.”
• Border catch-and-release dropped 99.99%: from 189,604 released in December 2023 (Biden) to just 20 in February 2025 (Trump).
• Southwest border crossings hit historic lows in March; northern border Swanton sector down 95% year-over-year (54 apprehensions across 300 miles).
• Tim Pool called the “Maryland Man” framing a “hoax” comparable to the “very fine people” and Covington narratives.
• Leavitt: “If you cross the border illegally, you will be swiftly deported and never return to the United States.”