Mahmoud Khalil Still Detained as the Trump Administration Defies Court Orders and Attacks Civil Liberties

Yesterday, Americans witnessed two defining moments that expose just how far civil liberties have eroded under the Trump administration—and how deeply AIPAC’s political machine is embedded in that assault.

First, Senator Alex Padilla—a sitting United States Senator—was thrown to the ground, handcuffed, and detained by federal agents. His crime? Attempting to ask DHS Secretary Kristi Noem a question about immigration enforcement. In 2025, asking the wrong question on camera can now get even a Senator cuffed and dragged away.

This isn’t a one-off abuse of power—it’s part of a much larger crackdown on dissent. And no case shows that more clearly than what continues to happen to Mahmoud Khalil.

Mahmoud Khalil, a recent Palestinian graduate student at Columbia University, has been locked up since March. His offense? Speaking out in support of Palestinian freedom. For months, the government has tried to portray Khalil as a national security threat for nothing more than exercising his First Amendment rights. Marco Rubio, doing AIPAC’s bidding, accused him of being "aligned with Hamas" and distributing "pro-Hamas propaganda"—allegations his legal team fully dismantled in court.

Khalil has been detained under a Cold War-era law, claiming his mere presence in the U.S. threatens "foreign policy." But what they really mean is that his speech threatens the political interests AIPAC works to protect.

Last week, federal Judge Michael Farbiarz issued a sweeping rebuke of the government’s actions. The judge ruled that Khalil's detention was likely unconstitutional, finding that it violated his First Amendment rights and inflicted "irreparable harm" by separating him from his wife and newborn child, damaging his reputation and career, and chilling his political speech. He ordered the government to either appeal or release Khalil by 8:30 a.m. CT.

The administration didn’t appeal. But they didn’t release him either.

Instead, they filed a last-minute memo, claiming a so-called “loophole” that allows them to keep Khalil locked up despite the judge’s clear ruling. As a result, Khalil now faces spending his first Father’s Day separated from his newborn son—all because a foreign lobby and its political enablers refuse to let him go.

This is AIPAC’s power in action. When the law threatens their agenda, they treat it as optional. When judges rule against them, they search for technicalities to maintain control. And when peaceful advocates like Mahmoud Khalil speak up, they move to silence them—just as they move against lawmakers who dare to challenge their grip on power.

The images of Senator Padilla being dragged away by federal agents for merely asking a question stand as a grim bookend to Khalil’s ongoing detention. Both reflect the same authoritarian playbook: criminalize dissent, intimidate challengers, and use the machinery of government to enforce political obedience.

But the ruling in Khalil’s case also revealed something else: the system can be challenged. A judge saw through the lies. The legal argument collapsed under scrutiny. And despite the government’s last-minute maneuver, their case grows weaker by the hour.

Mahmoud Khalil remains behind bars, but his case has exposed exactly how far AIPAC’s influence reaches—and exactly why Citizens Against AIPAC Corruption exists.

We will not be silenced by a foreign lobby. We will not back down from a government bought and paid for by AIPAC dollars. And we will keep fighting—until Mahmoud Khalil, and every voice like his, is free.