A group of five Democratic state lawmakers in Florida said they were denied entry to “Alligator Alcatraz,” a new migrant detention facility, on Thursday due to “safety reasons,“ days after President Trump toured the facility alongside Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R).
The lawmakers who tried to tour the facility, which opened on Tuesday, included state Democratic Reps. Anna Eskamani, Angie Nixon, and Michele Rayner, along with two state Sens. Shevrin Jones and Carlos Guillermo Smith.
“Florida law gives legislators the authority to make unannounced visits to state-run facilities — to inspect conditions and check on the wellbeing of the people inside. I’ve served in the Legislature for 13 years, and this has never happened,” Jones said in a Thursday post on the social media platform X.
