DHS Enacts New Restrictions On Congressional Lawmakers' Access to ICE Facilities

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security put new restrictions on congressional lawmakers' access to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities after several Democratic lawmakers have been denied access, and in some cases, arrested.

Under the new protocol, members of Congress are asked to provide notice of impending visit to any ICE facility at least 72 hours in advance. That request is in addition to existing requirements for office staffers to provide 24 hours' notice of visits, The Washington Post reports.

The guidelines also notes that ICE, a DHS agency, has sole discretion over whether to deny or cancel a tour of an ICE detention center by a member of Congress. They also explain that while members of Congress have the right to make unannounced visits to detention facilities for the purpose of oversight, ICE field offices "fall outside" those requirements.

The document states that "[ICE] retains the sole and unreviewable discretion to deny a request or otherwise cancel, reschedule or terminate a tour or visit," under several circumstances, including if "facility management or other ICE officials deem it appropriate to do so."

Under federal law, DHS is forbidden from preventing members of Congress from entering any facility "used to detain or otherwise house aliens," and lawmakers do not have to give DHS prior notice of a visit. Senators and representatives in Congress have oversight of agencies in the executive branch of government and control their funding.

The new policies come after a series of episodes where Democratic lawmakers were denied entry to ICE detention centers, and as a result, sometimes arrested. Most recently, on Wednesday, Rep. Judy Cho (D-California) was denied entry to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles, which she called "outrageous and unlawful."

Similarly, earlier this month, the Trump administration said it is prosecuting the U.S. Representative LaMonica McIver, a Democrat from New Jersey, over a scuffle at the gate of an immigration detention center on May 9 as lawmakers sought to conduct an oversight visit.

But the confrontations between ICE agents and Democratic lawmakers has not only been seen in Congress. Most notably, ICE agents have also arrested local Democratic politicians in blue states, including Mayor Ras Baraka of Newark, and New York City Comptroller Brad Lander in recent weeks.

Following the recent guideline change, Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (Mississippi), the ranking Democrat on the Homeland Security Committee, said in a statement Wednesday that the intention of the new policy was to "block congressional oversight of ICE facilities." He called it "an affront to the Constitution and Federal law."

"There is no valid or legal reason for denying Member access to ICE facilities and DHS's ever-changing justifications prove this," Thompson said. "To be clear, there is no agency or department that is 'too busy' for oversight. If ICE has nothing to hide, DHS must make its facilities available."