Congressional Democrats are demanding a tour of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Baltimore as part of the party’s push to conduct oversight over the Trump administration’s immigration policies.
The Maryland delegation, including Sens. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Angela Alsobrooks (D-MD), as well as Reps. Glenn Ivey (D-MD), Johnny Olzewski Jr. (D-MD), Sarah Elfreth (D-MD), and Kweisi Mfume (D-MD) were denied a tour of the George H. Fallon federal building on Monday.
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Their visit comes after allegations that detainees were experiencing inhumane conditions. ICE has denied these claims.
Mfume said during a press conference following the visit that the lawmakers were able to enter the building, but a director denied them a tour.
“We were not allowed entry, so we had to stand outside, bang on the door, and ultimately sit in front of the door,” Mfume said. “Finally, a director came out and explained to us that she had been given direction not to allow anyone, member of the House, Senate, or anyone into the facility.”
Mfume, a senior member of the House Oversight Committee, said being denied a tour contradicts laws that give Congress members the right to oversight over all ICE facilities.
“This does not bode well here in Baltimore or anywhere if members of the United States Congress, who are duly authorized to come in and to inspect, visit, or walk through a federal facility, are not allowed in,” Mfume said.
The Maryland leaders are the latest Democrats to demand access to ICE facilities, as the party alleges the Trump administration is illegally detaining and deporting immigrants without giving them due process. Many immigration advocacy groups have also raised concerns about the standard of care in the holding rooms across the country.
Van Hollen made headlines when he traveled and met with Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the man mistakenly deported from Maryland, who was being held in a notorious Salvadoran prison. Abrego Garcia is currently back in the United States, facing criminal charges of human smuggling, and pleaded not guilty.
Staffers for Alsobrooks and Van Hollen visited the Baltimore building in April, and the senators penned a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and ICE acting Director Todd Lyons about the reported conditions of the detainees while in holding cells.
Among the alleged inhumane conditions are detainees being held in cells longer than ICE standards call for, overcrowding without beds, inadequate food services, and no on-site medical staff.
The agency has previously released statements addressing the allegations, stating that the holding rooms at the Baltimore building are held to standards different from those of detention facilities.
“ICE Baltimore operates a holding room, not a detention facility, and therefore is not subject to the standards outlined in the 2011 Performance-Based National Detention Standards,” the agency said in a statement via CBS News.
“In the event of a medical emergency, detainees are promptly transported to nearby hospitals to receive immediate and appropriate care,” the agency added. “ICE remains dedicated to transparency and accountability in our operations.”
Democrats have been utilizing more confrontational tactics to protest President Donald Trump’s mass deportation operations, which led to lawmakers being handcuffed or criminally charged. This is part of a broader strategy by Democrats to prove to the base they are standing up to Trump’s “tyranny” while holding virtually no political power in Washington.
Republicans have been quick to blast Democrats’ “political theater” and for caring more about illegal immigrants than American citizens, a test of immigration messaging heading into the 2026 midterm elections, where the GOP is desperate to maintain its trifecta.
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“Maryland Democrats: Voted against the generational investments to secure our border and keep our communities safe in the One Big Beautiful Bill,” House Republicans’ social media account posted to X. “[Checkmark:] Sit on the floor and fight for violent illegal aliens.”
The White House responded to a post on X, saying, “No one defends criminal illegal aliens quite like Democrats.” Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), the lone Republican in the Maryland delegation and chairman of the Freedom Caucus, said, “Spare us the show. We stand with ICE and their mission to keep Maryland safe.”