Democrats Say They Were Denied Access To Delaney Hall Detainees

NEWARK, New Jersey — A half dozen House Democrats said they were denied access to detainees while conducting an oversight visit to Delaney Hall on Wednesday.

The visit to the controversial, privately run, 1,000-bed New Jersey immigration detention facility coincided with a shadow hearing led by Department of Homeland Security Committee ranking member Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.).

Thompson and fellow Democrats, including New Jersey Reps. LaMonica McIver and Rob Menendez, were allowed to enter the facility, which Thompson later said was “spic and span because they knew we were coming.” But the members said they were unable to talk with the hundreds of detainees inside unless they had given prior approval.

Members of Congress have the legal right to conduct oversight visits to immigration detention facilities. But the denial suggests a new and different interpretation of the law that could set up another showdown between the Trump administration and congressional Democrats.

“That’s not what the policy is intended to be,” Thompson told reporters.

Menendez, who said he’s conducted similar oversight visits 16 times, said this was a “unique” situation because lawmakers were denied access to detainees and blamed the Trump administration.

“They know when the focus is on those individuals, on their stories, it pierces through the narrative that this administration has been lying to the American people about, trying to sell the American people about ‘the worst of the worst,’ because that’s not who’s inside,” he told reporters after leaving the facility.

The conditions inside Delaney Hall are disputed. During the 90-minute hearing Wednesday inside Newark City Hall that Thompson led, Democratic lawmakers heard testimony about poor conditions, including criticism of the treatment and food provided to detainees. The White House has previously disputed those characterizations.

No representatives from the Trump administration testified. Thompson repeatedly suggested the hearing was a preview of scrutiny to come for DHS if Democrats retake the House in November’s midterm elections.

“Republicans have refused to conduct any basic oversight of the Department of Homeland Security,” he said.

In a statement, DHS assistant secretary Lauren Bis said there “are NO subprime conditions or abuse at Delaney Hall.”

“This hearing is nothing more than a political stunt by sanctuary politicians for fundraising clicks,” she said. “They should be thanking ICE law enforcement for removing murderers, rapists, pedophiles, and drug traffickers from their communities.”

Geo Group, the private company that operates Delaney Hall, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In recent weeks, there have been clashes outside Delaney Hall between protesters and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, as well as local authorities. Democratic New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill briefly limited access to the facility and Democratic Newark Mayor Ras Baraka also briefly imposed a partial curfew in the industrial neighborhood around Delaney Hall.

On Wednesday, no state or local police appeared at the scene and the facility was guarded by federal authorities, with some of them wearing insignia showing they were based in Los Angeles and Miami.

McIver is scheduled to appear in federal appeals court next week related to charges that the Trump administration filed against her after a May 2025 oversight visit devolved into a chaotic scrum. She has pleaded not guilty.