Earlier on Friday, some Democratic representatives from New Jersey and the mayor of Newark were involved in a demonstration outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in Newark. As reported by my colleague Ward Clark, the situation escalated unexpectedly:
Rob Menendez Jr., Bonnie Watson Coleman, and LaMonica McIver, all Democrats representing New Jersey, attempted to enter ICE’s Delaney Hall detention facility in Newark. They were stopped at the first checkpoint, according to Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin, who spoke to Fox News.
A DHS statement to Fox News expressed concerns, saying, “This attempt by Congress members to enter a detention facility is not only an odd political display but also endangers the safety of our law enforcement officers and the detainees. Members of Congress are not exempt from the law and cannot unlawfully force entry into such facilities. If a tour had been requested, we would have arranged it accordingly. The situation is constantly developing.”
Here’s the fun bit:
The prison currently holds alleged killers, MS-13 gang members, child rapists, among other criminal offenders.
The lawmakers were outside the facility with a group of protesters when the gates opened to allow an ICE bus in. The lawmakers then rushed through the gates and past security, DHS said.
Clark added that the mayor of Newark,
