Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representative Becca Balint (VT-AL), vice ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, today released the following statement on the Trump administration’s continued efforts to deport Mohsen Mahdawi in direct violation of his First Amendment rights. Mohsen Mahdawi is a Vermonter, a student activist at Columbia University, and a legal permanent resident.

“What the Trump administration is trying to do here is yet another step in their campaign to silence dissent in our country. Mohsen Mahdawi is a lawful permanent resident who was exercising his Constitutional rights. It’s deeply distressing that the administration is going to such lengths to try to silence him and force him out of the country.

“I want to be crystal clear to the American people: if Trump and his enablers get away with infringing on anyone’s First Amendment rights, they can come for any of our First Amendment rights. That’s why I was so eager to introduce the bicameral Land of the Free Act, which would guarantee all people within our borders the right to due process and freedom of speech.

“I will continue to stand with Mohsen throughout this absurd legal saga.”

Rep. Balint has consistently defended Mohsen Mahdawi since his initial April 2025 arrest in Colchester during a scheduled citizenship interview. Shortly after, Rep. Balint led a rally at the State Department to demand Mohsen’s release and highlight the unjust abductions across the country. Later in the month, in response to his arrest, Rep. Balint and 67 other House Democrats demanded the legal basis for his arrest from Secretaries Rubio and Noem and received no response. In August 2025, Rep. Balint introduced the Land of the Free Act alongside Rep Deborah Ross (NC-02). The bill would repeal Section 237(a)(4)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which grants the U.S. Secretary of State the power to deport visa-holders and legal permanent residents whose presence in the United States would have “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.” Later, in February 2026, Rep. Balint was joined by Mahdawi at the People's State of the Union in protest of President Trump’s State of the Union Address.

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