Rep. Dan Goldman's Statement on Joining Lawsuit Demanding Trump Administration Allow Access to Immigration Detention Facilities

“For months, masked, unidentified ICE agents have been illegally detaining hundreds of non-violent, law-abiding immigrants and holding them for days or weeks in federal facilities in my district without beds, showers, sufficient food, or proper medical care.  

 

“Despite repeated efforts, DHS and ICE blocked me from conducting my oversight obligations to inspect these reported inhumane conditions and hold ICE accountable. 

Today, fellow Members of Congress and I are filing suit.  

 

“The Department of Homeland Security’s refusal is illegal. The law clearly states that Members of Congress must be granted access to any DHS facility used “to detain or otherwise house” immigrants. DHS has repeatedly ignored this legal requirement and blocked multiple attempts by me to observe a facility in my district at 26 Federal Plaza.

 

"These actions constitute a direct violation of federal law and a dangerous obstruction of congressional authority. 

 

“We did not arrive at this decision lightly. We have given DHS and Secretary Noem every opportunity to comply with the law. We have asked our Republican colleagues in the majority to join us in supporting their own congressional authority. I have even provided prior notice of my visits, even though the statute expressly permits unannounced visits. At every turn, I have been rebuffed. When a federal agency willfully defies the law and blocks congressional oversight, Members of Congress have both the right and the obligation to act. 

 

“If House Republicans will not stand up for their own rights and obligations to conduct vital congressional oversight, then my Democratic colleagues and I are left with no choice but to go to the courts to do so. As Donald Trump escalates his mass deportation agenda with an infusion of $45 billion to detain and imprison immigrants, it is even more critical that Members of Congress be allowed to assert our statutory right to conduct oversight of ICE’s operations and provide transparency to the American people.”