> You're not being imprisoned, executed, or fined. You're being sent home.

Why do you think this matters? Further, why do you think this isn't a punishment (often of greater impact than a fine? Nothing like paying for 3/4 of a top tier ivy diploma only to be sent home a few semesters before graduating - nifty little 100k fine right there...)

These are clear punishments applied by the admin towards a group of people making specific speech they don't like.

You are ok with that.

Ipso facto - you are not pro free speech.

I... don't really know why you're bothering to argue that you are.

Deportation is if nothing else a significant financial loss to people. And forcible deportation comes with a period of imprisonment.

Let's not forget that people being sent to El Salvador who are not from there are not being deported, they're very definitely being imprisoned.

Some of them very much are being imprisoned, and deportations are not all to the country of origin.

Also, if the US government is doing deportations *for speech*, that's definitely 100% a free speech issue.