Rubio Deports Minnesota Man After State Pardon Fails to Stop Immigration Action
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said federal officials have deported Tou Lue Vang, a Laotian man pardoned last month by Minnesota officials for a 2006 conviction tied to the sexual abuse of a child.
Rubio said he revoked Vang’s legal status before federal agents took him into custody and removed him from the United States. CBS Minnesota reported that Vang pleaded guilty in 2005, later received a pardon from the Minnesota Board of Pardons, and was arrested and deported after Rubio’s action.
The case became a flashpoint because the pardon came from a board that includes Gov. Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison and Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Natalie Hudson. FOX 9 reported that state officials said the victim’s support letter played a key role in the decision.
The Minnesota Star Tribune reported that Vang received a removal order in 2006 but remained in the United States for years because Laos had no repatriation agreement with the U.S.
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The political reaction was immediate. DHS criticized the pardon, while Rep. Tom Emmer wrote on X that he was angry over the decision. The White House later cast the deportation as a Trump administration enforcement victory.
Minnesota officials offered a different explanation. Ellison’s office said the pardon followed an exhaustive process, including victim support, a Clemency Review Commission recommendation and community letters. FOX 9 also reported Ellison’s office said the pardon removed the underlying reason for the current deportation proceedings, but federal officials did not have to restore Vang’s green card and could restart removal proceedings.
The practical consequence is that state clemency did not control federal immigration enforcement. The case now gives both sides a high profile example in a larger fight over immigration, criminal convictions, rehabilitation and public safety.
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