Rubio Acts After Walz Pardoned Child Rapist Before Deportation
Marco Rubio steps in after Tim Walz – Marco Rubio steps in after Minnesota Governor Tim Walz granted a pardon to Tue Lue Vang, a convicted child rapist, just days before his scheduled deportation. The Senator took decisive action to ensure Vang would be removed from the United States, reversing the effects of the state-level clemency decision. Vang, a Laotian national, had been shielded from removal by the Minnesota Board of Pardons despite his serious criminal history. Rubio confirmed to Fox News Digital that the federal government has now permanently expelled the offender from American soil.
The Pardon That Triggered Federal Response
On June 10, Walz voted alongside state Attorney General Keith Ellison and Chief Justice Natalie Hudson to grant Vang clemency. The nine-member Minnesota Clemency Review Commission had recommended the pardon, highlighting Vang’s contributions to his community since his prison release. A commission member noted in a letter that the pardon represented “a notable achievement and a reflection of the work you have done since your conviction.”
The Department of Homeland Security quickly raised concerns that the pardon would create legal barriers to deporting the convicted offender. DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis called Walz’s decision “disgusting,” arguing it protected “criminal illegal aliens” from accountability. Federal authorities feared the state-level pardon would complicate efforts to remove Vang from the country.
Vang’s Crimes and Cultural Justification
Tue Lue Vang was convicted in 2006 of first-degree criminal sexual conduct for repeatedly raping a ten-year-old girl between 2002 and 2004. Following his arrest, Vang claimed his actions were guided by cultural traditions, asserting that his homeland considered it customary to marry and have sexual relations with girls as young as twelve. He also tried to compensate his victim financially in exchange for her silence about the abuse.
“Tue Lue Vang admitted to committing heinous crimes against a 10-year-old girl in Minnesota. He attempted to pay his victim for her silence and dismissed his acts of child abuse as a ‘minor thing.'” — Marco Rubio
Rubio emphasized that the timing of the pardon was particularly troubling, as it came just before Vang was set to be deported. The Senator explained that federal intervention was necessary to prevent Walz’s decision from creating obstacles for the Department of Homeland Security.
Walz Defends His Decision
Despite the gravity of Vang’s offenses, Walz defended the pardon by characterizing the convicted rapist as a “critical member of the community” and a “taxpaying citizen” who contributed to economic growth. The governor also mistakenly referred to Vang as a U.S. citizen, even though he was an illegal immigrant. Walz argued that sending Vang back to Laos, a country he had not visited since childhood, would benefit neither the individual nor the state.
“I can find no reason how Minnesota will be safer or better if Mr. Vang is deported to a country he has not been to since he was a child,” Walz said. “I do not see how it would serve his family, nor the economic interest where we have a taxpaying citizen who is creating job growth and living a life free from any criminal activity.”
This marked the second time Walz pardoned a Laotian criminal before deportation. In May, the governor and his board granted clemency to another convicted armed robber from Laos. Rubio criticized this pattern, stating that Americans should never fear that foreign sex predators, shielded by elected officials, could endanger them or their children.
“Just weeks ago, a foreign child rapist was freed to once again endanger America’s children after receiving a pardon from Minnesota Governor Tim Walz,” Rubio said. “Just days before he was scheduled to be deported, the Minnesota Governor pardoned him, setting him free to endanger American families once again.”
With Rubio’s intervention, Vang has now been permanently removed from the United States. The Senator confirmed that the convicted child rapist will never pose a threat to any American again, resolving the controversy that had allowed a dangerous criminal to remain in the country despite his serious offenses.
