A dozen House Democrats sued Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security for failing to admit Congress members to carry out oversight of federal immigrant detention facilities.
Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO), House assistant minority leader, and 11 Democrats represented by Democracy Forward sued ICE on Wednesday, alleging the Trump administration blocked the lawmakers from carrying out their constitutional duty of conducting oversight of the executive branch. The lawsuit names ICE, ICE official Todd Lyons, DHS, and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem as the defendants.
“Blocking Members of Congress from oversight visits to ICE facilities that house or otherwise detain immigrants clearly violates federal law — and the Trump administration knows it,” Neguse said in a statement. “Such blatant disregard for both the law and the constitutional order by the Trump administration warrants a serious and decisive response.”
The lawsuit asserts that the defendants were each denied the information necessary to conduct oversight on at least one occasion.
DHS recently updated its visitation policy and now requires 72 hours or three days’ notice before members can visit.
“In many instances on multiple occasions — by obstructing a requested or attempted oversight visit to a DHS facility where noncitizens are detained or otherwise housed,” the lawsuit says.
ICE currently has approximately 56,000 illegal immigrants in federal custody at sites across the country. The agency has come under fire from Democrats over allegations of inhumane and unsanitary conditions at select facilities, though ICE has faced criticism from Democrats under previous administrations as well.
Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Congressional Hispanic Caucus chairman, said the Trump administration’s refusal to facilitate the visitations was a “threat to our democracy.”
Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-TX) added that the visitation denials “cannot go unchallenged.”
DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin wrote in an email to the Washington Examiner Wednesday afternoon that the lawsuit was a public relations stunt that should not be taken seriously.
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“These Members of Congress could have just scheduled a tour; instead, they’re running to court to drive clicks and fundraising emails,” McLaughlin said. “As ICE law enforcement have seen a surge in assaults, disruptions, and obstructions to enforcement — including by [a] member of Congress themselves — any requests to tour processing centers and field offices must be approved by the Secretary of Homeland Security. These requests must be part of legitimate congressional oversight activities. ICE officers have seen an 830% surge in assaults.”
The lawsuit comes two months after Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-NJ) was arrested on charges of assaulting a federal officer while attempting to enter an ICE detention facility. McIver was indicted on federal charges in June and faces up to 17 years in prison if convicted.
Rachel Schilke contributed to this report.
