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Democrats love demanding access to facilities when it suits their political theater.
But Governor Ron DeSantis just taught five Democrat lawmakers a lesson about the law they won’t soon forget.
And Ron DeSantis just shut down five Democrat lawmakers who thought they could walk into Alligator Alcatraz unannounced.
Democrats Sued After Getting Turned Away From Immigration Facility
Five Democrat lawmakers filed a lawsuit in July after showing up unannounced at Florida’s controversial immigration detention facility in the Everglades — dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz” by state officials.
State Senator Shevrin Jones (D-Miami Gardens), State Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith (D-Orlando), State Representative Anna Eskamani (D-Orlando), State Representative Angie Nixon (D-Jacksonville), and State Representative Michele Rayner (D-St. Petersburg) tried to conduct what they called an “unannounced inspection” of the facility on July 3.¹
Security turned them away at the gate.
The Democrats weren’t happy about it.
They claimed the denial violated state laws that grant legislators access to correctional institutions and amounted to “unconstitutional executive overreach.”²
“The petitioners attempted to arrive unannounced so that they could observe the unadulterated conditions of the facility,” their lawsuit stated.³
The facility sits at the remote Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, deep in the Everglades and surrounded by Big Cypress National Preserve.
DeSantis opened the detention center this summer to help President Donald Trump’s mass deportation efforts, and Democrats have been looking for any angle to attack it.
DeSantis Administration Fires Back With the Law
The DeSantis administration filed a response last week in Leon County Circuit Court that demolished the Democrats’ legal arguments.
Attorneys for DeSantis and Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie argued the laws Democrats cited “do not entitle them as individual legislators to enter Alligator Alcatraz at their pleasure.”⁴
The response hits Democrats with a crucial legal distinction — the facility isn’t a prison.
“The facility is not a ‘state correctional institution’ because it is not a ‘prison’ or ‘other correctional facility,’” the filing stated.⁵
Prisons are part of the criminal justice system. But Alligator Alcatraz operates as a “short-term civil detention facility” where illegal aliens are processed for deportation under federal authority.
Translation: The state laws Democrats claimed give them unlimited access only apply to Florida Department of Corrections facilities.
https://twitter.com/Rightanglenews/status/1939031150304883178?s=20
Alligator Alcatraz doesn’t fall under DOC jurisdiction, so those laws don’t apply.
Democrats thought they found a loophole. DeSantis’ lawyers just slammed the door shut on it.
The Separation of Powers Argument Democrats Didn’t See Coming
The Democrats tried a second attack angle in their lawsuit — claiming DeSantis violated separation of powers by preventing “duly elected members of the Florida Legislature” from exercising oversight.
That argument just got shredded too.
DeSantis administration attorneys pointed out that the Florida Constitution gives the Legislature as a body oversight authority. Individual lawmakers acting alone don’t have those same powers.
“Far from the governor or FDEM usurping the authority of another branch of government, it is petitioners who attempt to usurp the authority of the Legislature and its committees by taking matters into their own hands,” the state’s response read.⁶
That’s a devastating blow to the Democrats’ case.
They claimed DeSantis was grabbing power. Turns out they’re the ones trying to exercise authority they don’t actually possess.
The state Constitution authorizes legislative committees to conduct investigations.
Five rogue Democrats showing up unannounced aren’t a committee.
Some state and federal officials have toured the facility since the controversy began — but those were organized visits, not surprise inspections designed to generate headlines and footage for campaign ads.
Trump’s Deportation Agenda Drives Democrats Into a Frenzy
The Democrats’ desperation to access Alligator Alcatraz reveals just how much Trump’s immigration enforcement terrifies them.
The facility was built in eight days this summer to support Trump’s deportation operations.
It features more than 200 security cameras, over 28,000 feet of barbed wire, and 400 security personnel.⁷
The detention center can hold up to 3,000 illegal aliens initially, with plans to expand to 5,000 beds.⁸
President Trump toured Alligator Alcatraz on July 1 alongside DeSantis and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
https://twitter.com/RodDMartin/status/1940164245465030718?s=20
The facility’s remote location and natural security from alligators and other wildlife make escape nearly impossible.⁹
That’s exactly what has Democrats panicking.
They’ve spent years encouraging illegal immigration and sanctuary city policies.
Now Trump and DeSantis built a facility specifically designed to process illegal aliens for deportation — and it’s working.
The Democrats can’t stand watching their open borders agenda get demolished. So they sued, claiming they need unfettered access to inspect conditions.
But their lawsuit was never about oversight.
It’s about generating negative press coverage and finding any excuse to shut down Trump’s deportation operations.
The case now sits before Leon County Circuit Judge Jonathan Sjostrom.
No hearings have been scheduled yet.
DeSantis just proved Democrats can’t use vague statutory language and separation of powers arguments to bully their way into secure federal facilities whenever they want a photo op.
If Democrats want to inspect Alligator Alcatraz, they can follow proper procedures like everyone else.
The days of showing up unannounced and demanding entry “at their pleasure” are over.
¹ CBS Miami, “Florida Gov. DeSantis fires back at Democrats over ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ access lawsuit,” November 24, 2025.
² – ⁶ Ibid.
⁷ PBS NewsHour, “First immigration detainees arrive at ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ in Florida Everglades,” July 3, 2025.
⁸ Ibid.
⁹ CNN, “Florida to detain migrants in new Everglades facility dubbed ‘Alligator Alcatraz,’” June 25, 2025.
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