U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has terminated the legal status of Tue Lue Vang, an illegal immigrant convicted of child sexual assault, leading to his deportation from the United States. The action followed a pardon granted to Vang by Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and the state's Board of Pardons, which Rubio stated would have otherwise shielded him from removal.
Rubio told Fox News Digital that he intervened to ensure Vang's deportation after the Minnesota Board of Pardons granted him clemency on June 10. Vang had been convicted in 2006 of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for repeatedly raping a 10-year-old girl between 2002 and 2004. At the time of his arrest, Vang reportedly told authorities that marrying and having sex with girls as young as 12 was a cultural practice, and he admitted to attempting to pay his victim for her silence, dismissing his actions as a "minor thing."
"Americans should never have to live in fear that foreign sex predators — shielded from deportation by their own elected officials — could endanger them or their children," Rubio said. "That's why I terminated his legal status in the United States. Vang has now been removed from our country and will never pose a threat to any American ever again."
The Minnesota Board of Pardons, which includes Governor Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Chief Justice Natalie Hudson, recommended the pardon to Vang. The board's decision was based on a recommendation from the nine-member Minnesota Clemency Review Commission (CRC). A CRC member stated in a letter to Vang that receiving a pardon was a "notable achievement and a reflection of the work you have done since your conviction."
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials had expressed concern that the pardon would prevent Vang's deportation. Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis of DHS criticized the decision, calling it "disgusting" that Walz and other Minnesota politicians would protect "criminal illegal aliens."
In May, prior to the Vang pardon, Walz and his board also pardoned another Laotian immigrant convicted of armed robbery who was also facing deportation. At that time, Walz referred to Vang as a "citizen" and argued that his deportation would not make Minnesota safer, stating that Vang had become a "critical member of the community" since his release from prison and was a "taxpaying citizen who is creating job growth and living a life free from any criminal activity."