A group of Democratic state lawmakers from Florida were turned away from “Alligator Alcatraz” by authorities Thursday, after seeking to exercise “oversight” over the facility.
Democratic State Senators Shevrin Jones and Carlos Guillermo Smith of Florida and Democratic State Representatives Anna Eskamani, Angie Nixon and Michele Rayner were turned away from the facility used by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after a back and forth with authorities, claiming the facility was “unsafe” in a statement released after their effort to visit was denied. In a video posted to X, Smith denounced the facility as “totally un-American.”
“We have the statutory right as lawmakers to exercise oversight, not only over our state prisons, but also over detention facilities,” Smith claimed in the video. “It’s very clear in the law, but they have something to hide, and they don’t wanna let us in and, so, unfortunately, our questions remain unanswered.”
WATCH:
Legislators have the statutory authority to make unannounced visits to state-run facilities, but the DeSantis regime is REFUSING us entry into ‘Alligator Alcatraz’.
WE THE PEOPLE deserve to know what’s happening in our state, and to our people, with $450 MILLION of our money! https://t.co/1q8VeZkbOP pic.twitter.com/u81Ycx6iYy
— Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith (@CarlosGSmith) July 3, 2025
“What are the conditions within this facility?” Smith asked. “Are people’s due process rights being respected? What is the hurricane evacuation plan, considering there’s been flooding happening already before this facility even opened, and, also, are they going to be bringing pregnant women and children into this facility, even though the [Trump] administration has said this is for the worst of the worst?”
President Donald Trump on Tuesday toured the center, located at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in the Everglades near Ochopee, roughly 50 miles from Miami, alongside Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida.
“We will not be silent. This is totally un-American,” Smith claimed. “It is cruel, and this is just another Republican grift opportunity, given that $450 million of taxpayer money is being spent here, and no-bid contracts are being awarded to Republican donors with no oversight, with no answers, no accountability, no transparency.”
“We cannot stay silent,” Smith said.
The Trump administration approved the construction of the facility to house and process illegal immigrants for deportation on June 24, following a suggestion by Republican Attorney General James Uthmeier of Florida.
Democratic Rep. LaMonica McIver of New Jersey was charged with assaulting an ICE agent after an incident in May at an ICE facility in Newark when she and two other Democratic representatives tried to force their way into the facility, claiming they were attempting to engage in oversight.
A group of state Democratic lawmakers – including Central Florida’s @AnnaForFlorida and @CarlosGSmith – say they have been denied access to the “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration detention center. Rep. Eskamani tells NewsNight she’s concerned over conditions at the site. pic.twitter.com/OF8QTEbkAF
— NewsNight WUCF (@NewsNightWUCF) July 3, 2025
Trump issued several executive orders to address illegal immigration and border security, including designating Mexican drug cartels, the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua and the El Salvadoran prison gang MS-13 as foreign terrorist organizations upon taking office Jan. 20. He invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to speed up the deportation of gang members on March 15.
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