‘This is going to end really badly’: Adam Kinzinger warns the White House is juggling knives and one of them is about to drop

Looks like the Trump administration thinks it can play God while simultaneously picking fights with major media outlets. Former Republican Congressman Adam Kinzinger — who’s moonlighting as the administration’s prophet of doom these days — didn’t mince words when he declared on X: “This is going to end really badly for the White House.”

Once a staunch conservative darling, he’s now better known for his blunt critiques of the Trumpian mess that’s hijacked his party. Kinzinger’s not pulling any punches here, warning that the White House’s handling of this latest immigration circus is a ticking time bomb.

This is going to end really badly for the White House https://t.co/V24UHAuTBJ

— Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini) 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@AdamKinzinger) April 18, 2025

It all started when The New York Times ran a story about Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old man deported from Maryland to El Salvador under what a federal court deemed “an administrative error.” The story, headlined “Senator Meets With Wrongly Deported Maryland Man In El Salvador,” focused on Senator Chris Van Hollen’s efforts to meet Garcia and bring attention to what he called a gross miscarriage of justice. Seems straightforward. Someone was deported in error, and a senator stepped in to try to fix it. 

The White House’s official Twitter account (or “X” if you’re one of those people who actually calls it that) decided to clap back in the most juvenile way possible. They scribbled over the New York Times headline like a high schooler correcting a rival’s prom poster, replacing “wrongly deported Maryland man” with their preferred label: “deported MS-13 illegal alien.” Oh, and they made sure to underline the “illegal alien” part, just in case their message wasn’t clear enough. Subtlety, thy name is not Trump. The White House also added a snarky caption for good measure: “Oh, and by the way, @ChrisVanHollen—he’s NOT coming back.”

On paper, his story is the kind of thing that should make any reasonable person pause. He lived in Maryland with his family before being deported to one of El Salvador’s most notorious prisons, the so-called “Terrorism Confinement Center” (CECOT). This is a facility known less for its rehabilitation efforts and more for its overcrowding, harsh conditions, and allegations of human rights abuses. Garcia’s deportation was ruled an “administrative error” by a federal court, which basically means the government admitted it messed up. But instead of fixing the mistake, the Trump administration doubled down, claiming that Garcia is a member of the MS-13 gang—a claim that has yet to be substantiated with any solid evidence.

Let’s pause here for a second. Even if Garcia were a gang member (a big “if”), does that justify skipping due process? Courts, including the Supreme Court, have ordered his return to the U.S. for proper deportation proceedings. That’s not some radical leftist agenda—that’s just the law. But the White House isn’t interested in following the rules when they can score political points by demonizing immigrants.

Kinzinger might be the Cassandra of this situation, but at least he’s calling it like he sees it. And honestly, it’s hard not to agree with him. The White House can keep juggling knives all it wants, but eventually, gravity catches up with everyone. The only question is how much damage will be done when the knives finally hit the ground. And knowing this administration, it’s going to be one hell of a mess.