Legal experts told USA TODAY that Congressional oversight is key to ensuring safe conditions inside the facility, especially without notice.
Ilhan Omar denied entry to Minnesota ICE detention center
Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar and Annie Craig had their admission to a federal detention center revoked while touring a federal detention center in Minneapolis.
Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar announced on January 10 that she was denied access to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Minneapolis.
The progressive Democrat’s visit comes amid nationwide demonstrations against immigration enforcement in Minneapolis and Portland, Oregon, and days earlier, on January 7, the killing of Nicole Renee Good, 37, by ICE agents. Omar, along with fellow Minnesota Democrats Angie Craig and Kelly Morrison, attempted to break into the Whipple Building, a federal building.
“Lawmakers have a legal right and constitutional responsibility to monitor where people are being held,” Omar said in the X post. “The public has a right to know what is happening in ICE facilities.”
News outlets reported that three U.S. delegates were escorted past federal agents who had been taken away, most of whom appeared to be masked. Craig told MS Now that he was told by ICE officials that members of Congress could not enter the facility because it was funded by the “Big Beautiful Act,” not Congressional spending.
Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE, said lawmakers were told the visit was inappropriate and “not in compliance” with the agency’s mandate, citing concerns for the safety of detainees and staff. McLaughlin said “current court orders and policies” require members of Congress to notify ICE at least seven days in advance of their visit to Congress.
“Due to their failure to comply with this mandate, Rep. Omar and her colleagues were denied access to the facility,” McLaughlin said in a statement.
DHS did not respond to additional questions about court orders or policies indicating such restrictions. Members of Congress can conduct surprise inspections of ICE facilities under federal appropriations law.
Funds provided to DHS cannot be used to prevent members of Congress from “entering, for the purpose of conducting surveillance, facilities operated by or for the Department of Homeland Security that are used to detain or house aliens,” according to federal law. The law also states that “nothing in this section shall be construed to require members of Congress to provide advance notice of their intention to enter a facility.”
In mid-December, a federal judge blocked a Trump administration policy that required members of Congress to request access to ICE detention facilities at least a week in advance. The DHS policy, announced in June, likely “violates the law and exceeds DHS’s statutory authority,” U.S. Judge Gia Cobb of the District of Columbia wrote in a Dec. 17 opinion.
Legal experts previously told USA TODAY that oversight, especially unannounced inspections of conditions, is key to ensuring safe conditions within the facility.
“This means there will be no guardrails to ensure a safe environment for people in detention,” said Greg Chen, senior director of government relations at the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Contact us via email (emcuevas1@usatoday.com) or Signal (emcuevas.01).
