MINNEAPOLIS — Three Democratic members of Congress from Minnesota, including Rep. Ilhan Omar, were blocked from entering a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center near Minneapolis on Saturday morning, escalating tensions in the Twin Cities after the fatal shooting of a woman by an ICE agent earlier in the week.
The lawmakers — Omar, Rep. Angie Craig and Rep. Kelly Morrison — said they were briefly admitted to the facility inside the Bishop Whipple Federal Building before officials rescinded access and escorted them out within minutes. The encounter unfolded as clashes and demonstrations continued following the shooting death of 37-year-old Renee Good in south Minneapolis.
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“Shortly after we were let in, two officials came in and said that they received the message that we were no longer allowed to be in the building and that they were rescinding our invitation,” Omar said at a press briefing. She called the move “a blatant attempt to obstruct members of Congress from doing their oversight duties.”
The denial appears to run counter to a recent federal court ruling. Last month, U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb found that Department of Homeland Security policies declaring ICE field offices “off-limits for congressional oversight” and requiring seven days’ notice for visits violated federal law, concluding members of Congress cannot be barred from unannounced inspections of immigrant detention facilities.
Craig and Morrison, who represent districts in the Twin Cities suburbs, said they were similarly denied entry after initially being allowed inside. Omar said her office had notified the facility in advance of the visit, but the group was told to leave roughly 10 minutes after arriving.
The lawmakers said officials cited the source of the facility’s funding as the reason for denying access, asserting it came through the Big Beautiful Bill Act — an explanation the members said was used to justify restricting the visit.
“We let ICE know, the Department of Homeland Security know, that they were violating federal law,” Craig said. “They do not care that they are violating federal law. This is beyond the pale. This administration continues to use Minnesota as a political stunt, and earlier this week, it got a woman killed.”
Omar said she observed planes departing from the location and was told by officials the flights were not deportations but transfers moving detainees to other facilities within the United States, according to Axios. Asked about the needs of people in custody, she said officials claimed detainees did not remain long enough to require basic hygiene supplies — despite repeated calls from advocates and attorneys for improved conditions across holding facilities.
The lawmakers’ attempted visit came amid ongoing protests over Good’s killing and growing scrutiny of federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota. The Bishop Whipple complex, situated near Minneapolis–St. Paul International Airport, has long been a flashpoint for immigration-related demonstrations and oversight efforts by elected officials.
Saturday’s turnaway adds a fresh legal and political dimension to the fallout from the shooting and the conditions in ICE custody. It also sets up a potential test of congressional oversight rights in the wake of Judge Cobb’s ruling, which underscored lawmakers’ authority to inspect detention sites without prior notice.
As of Saturday, ICE officials on site told the members that detainee transfers were continuing. The three representatives said they would continue pressing for access and for answers on operations at the facility as demonstrations in the Twin Cities persisted through the weekend.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
