Tag Archives: Bonnie Watson Coleman

Guardian: Outrage as DHS moves to restrict lawmaker visits to detention centers

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The US Department of Homeland Security is now requiring lawmakers to provide 72 hours of notice before visiting detention centers, according to new guidance.

The guidance comes after a slew of tense visits from Democratic lawmakers to detention centers amid Donald Trump’s crackdowns in immigrant communities across the country. Many Democratic lawmakers in recent weeks have either been turned away, arrested or manhandled by law enforcement officers at the facilities, leading to public condemnation towards Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (Ice) handling of such visits.

Lawmakers are allowed to access DHS facilities “used to detain or otherwise house aliens” for inspections and are not required “to provide prior notice of the intent to enter a facility”, according to the 2024 Federal Appropriations Act.

Previous language surrounding lawmaker visits to such facilities said that “Ice will comply with the law and accommodate members seeking to visit/tour an Ice detention facility for the purpose of conducting oversight,” CNN reported.

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In response to the updated guidance, Mississippi’s Democratic representative and the ranking member of the House committee on homeland security, Bennie Thompson, condemned what he called the attempt by the homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, to “block oversight on Ice”.

“Kristi Noem’s new policy to block congressional oversight of Ice facilities is not only unprecedented, it is an affront to the constitution and federal law. Noem is now not only attempting to restrict when members can visit, but completely blocking access to Ice field offices – even if members schedule visits in advance,” Thompson said.

“This unlawful policy is a smokescreen to deny member visits to Ice offices across the country, which are holding migrants – and sometimes even US citizens – for days at a time. They are therefore detention facilities and are subject to oversight and inspection at any time. DHS pretending otherwise is simply their latest lie.”

Outrage as DHS moves to restrict lawmaker visits to detention centers
Elected officials told to give 72 hours’ notice before visiting immigration facilities, with some sites completely off limits

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jun/19/dhs-immigration-detention-center-visits-new-guidance

CNN: DHS issues new guidance for lawmakers visiting ICE facilities after tense confrontations

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After a spate of tense encounters involving lawmakers at Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, the Department of Homeland Security is asking members of Congress to provide 72 hours of notice before visiting detention centers, according to new guidance.

Under the annual appropriations act, lawmakers are allowed to enter any DHS facilities “used to detain or otherwise house aliens” to inspect them as part of their oversight duties. The act outlines that they are not required “to provide prior notice of the intent to enter a facility.”

The agency’s new memo also seeks to differentiate ICE field offices from detention facilities, noting that “ICE Field Offices are not detention facilities” and therefore do not fall under the appropriations act provision.  

Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, the top Democrat on the Homeland Security Committee, called the move “unprecedented” and an “affront to the Constitution and Federal law.”

DHS issues new guidance for lawmakers visiting ICE facilities after tense confrontations | CNN Politics
The agency’s new memo seeks to differentiate ICE field offices from detention facilities, noting that “ICE Field Offices are not detention facilities” and therefore do not fall under the appropriations act provision.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/19/politics/dhs-ice-visits-congress-lawmakers

NJ.com: Judge chides feds in dismissing ICE trespassing charge against Newark mayor

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A federal judge in Newark on Wednesday agreed to dismiss trespassing charges against Mayor Ras J. Baraka, chiding the federal prosecutors he said had filed the charges in a “worrisome” rush.

U.S. Magistrate Judge André Espinosa granted a motion for dismissal from the acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey, Alina Habba, during a hearing in the Martin Luther King Jr. Federal Courthouse, two blocks from Baraka’s office at Newark City Hall.

At the request of Habba’s office, Espinosa dismissed the charge “with prejudice,” meaning the case cannot be reopened.

But Espinosa harshly criticized federal authorities for acting with speed over caution.

“The hasty arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka followed swiftly by the dismissal of these trespassing charges a mere 13 days later suggests a worrisome misstep by your office,” Espinosa told Assistant U.S. Attorney Stephen Demanovich, whose boss, Habba, was not in court. “An arrest, particularly of a public figure, is not a preliminary investigative tool. It is a severe action, carrying significant reputational and personal consequences, and it should only be undertaken after a thorough, dispassionate evaluation of credible evidence.”

Espinosa, who addressed the parties remotely and not face-to-face in a courtroom, added that the conduct of the case was in sharp contrast to the stellar reputation of New Jersey’s U.S. attorney’s office over the past two decades.

What were you expecting when the U.S. Attorney with the stellar reputation was replaced by one of Trump’s loyal and not-particularly-bright sycophants, Alina “Bimbo #4” Habba?

“The apparent rush in this case, culminating today in the embarrassing retraction of charges, suggests a failure to adequately investigate, to carefully gather facts, and to carefully consider the implications of your actions before wielding your immense power.”

That criticisim applies equally well to all four of Trumps pathetic bimbos, not only Alina “Bimbo #4” Habba, but also Karoline “Bimbo #1” Leavitt, Kristi “Bimbo #2” Noem, and Pam “Bimbo #3” Bondi, each of whom is dumber than a rock, with all due respect to rocks.

Click the link below to read the rest of the judge’s scathing comments.

Judge chides feds in dismissing ICE trespassing charge against Newark mayor
Mayor Ras J. Baraka was arrested May 9 outside an immigrant detention center, though federal prosecutors later decided to drop the charges.

https://www.nj.com/essex/2025/05/judge-chides-feds-in-dismissing-ice-trespassing-charge-against-newark-mayor.html

Knews: AOC Rips ‘Anti-American’ Trump Over Democratic Arrests

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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) criticized President Donald Trump and his administration for being “anti-American” following a confrontation involving Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and Democratic lawmakers at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center. Baraka was accused for trespassing and released after arrest. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin accused New Jersey Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, LaMonica McIver, and Robert Menendez of trespassing and assaulting ICE agents.

Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) said, “If anyone’s breaking the law in this situation, it’s not members of Congress, it’s the Department of Homeland Security. It’s people like Tom Homan and Secretary Kristi Noem.” She added, “You lay a finger on someone, on Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman … or any of the representatives that were there, you lay a finger on them, we are going to have a problem. Because the people who are breaking the law are the people not abiding by it.”

AOC Rips ‘Anti-American’ Trump Over Democratic Arrests
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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/aoc-rips-anti-american-trump-over-democratic-arrests/ss-AA1F5sac

Miami Herald: Multiple Democrats Under Investigation — DHS Accused of ‘Lying’

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A confrontation at the Delaney Hall Detention Center in New Jersey may lead to criminal charges against several House Democrats. The incident has prompted an investigation by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) into alleged assaults on ICE officers during a protest at the facility. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested for trespassing after ignoring warnings to leave the premises.

I’ve watched the video of the “assaults”. It was the mayor and House representatives who were assaulted by ICE thugs outside the premises.

Multiple Democrats Under Investigation — DHS Accused of ‘Lying’
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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/multiple-democrats-under-investigation-dhs-accused-of-lying/ss-AA1F6an4

Sacramento Bee: ‘Multiple Warnings’: Democratic Mayor’s Arrest Sparks Backlash

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Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested by federal immigration police while supporting Congress members Bonnie Watson Coleman, LaMonica McIver, and Rob Menendez during a tour of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement jail. After moving to a public area following a request to leave, Baraka was seized by officers and charged with trespassing. He was released after several hours, and later expressed concerns about the conditions of detainees and the need for inspections to ensure safety protocols.

‘Multiple Warnings’: Democratic Mayor’s Arrest Sparks Backlash
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https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/multiple-warnings-democratic-mayor-s-arrest-sparks-backlash/ss-AA1F0PDS

New York Post: DHS Secretary Kristi Noem [Bimbo #2] says NJ Dems involved in Newark ICE center fracas should be censured: ‘This was committing felonies’

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Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem [Bimbo #2] called for the congressional lawmakers involved in a heated confrontation with law enforcement outside a Newark immigration detention center to be censured.

“What happened last Friday was we had members of Congress assaulting law enforcement officers,” Noem [Bimbo #2] said TUESDAY of the chaotic scene that unfolded last week outside the Delaney Hall Detention Center, during an interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters.

I saw the videos, you stupid loud-mouthed goat-and-puppy killing bitch. It was the ICE thugs who assaulted the Congressional representatives, who were there on official business.

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem says NJ Dems involved in Newark ICE center fracas should be censured: ‘This was committing felonies’
“They don’t deserve to be in the House,” Noem said of the New Jersey lawmakers involved in the incident. “They should be censured by it.”

https://nypost.com/2025/05/13/us-news/kristi-noem-says-nj-dems-involved-in-newark-ice-center-fracas-should-be-censured

Guardian: Trump officials ‘created confrontation’ that led to arrest of Newark mayor

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Democratic Congress members who visited detention center with mayor say Ice officials ‘created the chaos’

Trump administration homeland security officials were responsible for starting the confrontation on Friday at a New Jersey immigration jail that led to the arrest of Newark’s mayor as well as threats to detain three members of Congress, the representatives said Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union.

The Democratic representatives Bonnie Watson Coleman, LaMonica McIver and Rob Menendez – all of New Jersey – visited the controversial Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detention center known as Delaney Hall on Friday to inspect the facility. As they waited to enter Delaney Hall, Newark’s mayor, Ras Baraka, arrived – and as he left the property, he was arrested outside by Ice officials accusing him of trespassing, leading to a commotion at the entrance of the jail.

There evidently was shoving and pushing between federal immigration officials and the members of Congress, which Watson Coleman, McIver and Menendez blamed on the immigration officials.

On CNN’s State of the Union, the Congress members said immigration officials had ample opportunity to deescalate the situation before someone called in and instructed masked agents to arrest Baraka.

“They created that confrontation, they created that chaos,” McIver said.

Since the ordeal on Friday at Delaney Hall, homeland security officials have accused the Congress members of staging a “bizarre political stunt” there while also accusing McIver of “bodyslamming” authorities at the scene.

McIver rejected those allegations.

“I honestly do not know how to bodyslam anyone,” McIver said. “There’s no video that supports me bodyslamming anyone.

“We were simply there to do our job – there for an oversight visit.”

Trump officials ‘created confrontation’ that led to arrest of Newark mayor
Democratic Congress members who visited detention center with mayor say Ice officials ‘created the chaos’

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/11/trump-officials-newark-mayor-arrest

Mediaite: Alina Habba [Bimbo #4] Hails Arrest of ‘Grandstanding’ Democratic Mayor at ICE Detention Facility

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Newark Democratic Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested on Friday for allegedly trespassing at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in the city.

Shortly afterward, Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Alina Habba phoned into Fox News to gloat about it.

Baraka and three New Jersey Democratic members of Congress – Rep. Monica McIver, Rep. Bob Menendez Jr., and Bonnie Watson Coleman – visited the facility, Delaney Hall, which is anticipated will hold 1,000 immigrants. Habba tweeted about Baraka’s arrest and claimed the mayor was trespassing.

“The Mayor of Newark, Ras Baraka, committed trespass and ignored multiple warnings from Homeland Security Investigations to remove himself from the ICE detention center in Newark, New Jersey this afternoon,” she wrote. “He has willingly chosen to disregard the law. That will not stand in this state. He has been taken into custody. NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW.”

I’ve seen the video, you lying bitch. He was arrested OUTSIDE the perimeter, and all 3 members of Congress were assaulted by ICE’s thugs.

The only “Grandstander” here is Alina Habba, Bimbo #4.

The more we see of ICE, the worse it gets.

Alina Habba Hails Arrest of ‘Grandstanding’ Democratic Mayor at ICE Detention Facility
Newark Democratic Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested on Friday for allegedly trespassing at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in the city.
Alina Habba Hails Arrest of ‘Grandstanding’ Democratic Mayor at ICE Detention Facility

BBC: New Jersey mayor arrested for protesting at migrant centre

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The mayor of New Jersey’s largest city has been arrested after allegedly trying to force his way into a migrant detention facility.

Newark Mayor Ras Barak, who is running for New Jersey governor, “committed trespass and ignored multiple warnings”, to leave Delaney Hall, a detention facility being run by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to acting US attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba.

Barak was accompanied by three Democratic members of Congress, who were not arrested. They say they were there to conduct “oversight” to ensure that the facility is not violating any building safety ordinances.

It is unclear whether Barak faces criminal charges.

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New Jersey’s Democratic Governor Phil Murphy said he was “outraged” by Baraka’s arrest and called for him to be immediately released.

New Jersey Democratic lawmakers Rob Menendez Jr, Bonnie Watson Coleman and LaMonica McIver were also present during the protest.

City officials allege the private firm that signed a contract with ICE did not obtain proper permits and blocked necessary inspections. The firm has told media they haver the proper permits.

Earlier on Friday, Congresswoman Watson Coleman posted on social media: “We’re at Delaney Hall, an ICE prison in Newark that opened without permission from the city & in violation of local ordinances.

New Jersey mayor arrested for protesting at migrant centre
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was part of a group of Democratic officials seeking to enter the facility housing detained migrants.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy904elvxj3o