Three Democratic members of Congress from Minnesota, including Representative Ilhan Omar, were prevented from entering an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centre near Minneapolis on Saturday. The incident occurred amid ongoing protests following the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good by an ICE agent earlier in the week.
Omar said the group was initially allowed inside the Whipple federal building but was asked to leave after about ten minutes. “Two officials came in and said that they received the message that we were no longer allowed to be in the building,” she told reporters. The lawmakers were told the facility’s funding came from the Big Beautiful Bill Act, which was used to justify restricting their visit.
The move came despite a federal judge ruling last month that the Trump administration cannot bar members of Congress from visiting immigrant detention facilities, even unannounced. US District Judge Jia Cobb had declared that policies requiring seven days’ notice and deeming ICE field offices off-limits violated federal law.
Representatives Angie Craig and Kelly Morrison were also denied entry. Craig criticised the administration, saying, “They do not care that they are violating federal law. This administration continues to use Minnesota as a political stunt, and earlier this week, it got a woman killed.”
Omar noted she had observed planes departing from the location and was told they were moving detainees to other facilities, not deportation flights. She also raised concerns about conditions, saying officials claimed detainees did not remain long enough to need basic hygiene supplies, despite calls for improvements.
