How "Alligator Alcatraz" fit into DeSantis' political playbook
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President Trump, Gov. Ron DeSantis and other officials at Alligator Alcatraz before it opened in July. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
Florida's detention camp in the Everglades, dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz," is reportedly winding down operations after costing the state hundreds of millions of dollars to maintain.
Why it matters: Gov. Ron DeSantis has, throughout his tenure, transformed Florida into a conservative test kitchen, and this short-lived — but expensive — facility is the latest reminder of the cost of those experiments.
Catch up quick: State officials told vendors last week that the detention camp would begin shutting down, the New York Times reported.
- The facility held an average of about 1,400 detainees in April and cost the state about $1 million per day to maintain.
The big picture: DeSantis has funneled tens of millions of dollars into high-profile — and often controversial — immigration enforcement efforts before.
- The media-averse governor explained the logic behind his approach in his book, writing that a true leader "shapes [public] opinion through newsworthy actions" — but those actions come at a high price.
Case in point: In the lead-up to his failed presidential campaign in 2022, he spent around $1.5 million to fly migrants to Martha's Vineyard, and the Legislature earmarked $12 million in 2023 for the relocation program.
- The move raised eyebrows at the time, particularly because Florida used taxpayer dollars to transport migrants who weren't present in the state.
- DeSantis sent more than 1,000 personnel in 2023 from state agencies to the southern border, including 101 Florida Highway Patrol troopers.
- By April 2024, FHP alone had spent nearly $13.5 million on the deployment.
What they're saying: University of Central Florida political science professor Aubrey Jewett tells Axios that the governor bills himself as a fiscal conservative but doesn't mind spending millions to "garner news coverage."
The other side: The governor's office and the state Division of Emergency Management, which manages the detention camp, pointed Axios to comments DeSantis made in a recent press conference.
- "We've saved the taxpayers money," he said. "We've saved taxpayers from medical care and schooling" of undocumented immigrants.
- DeSantis added that his enforcement actions also contributed to "public safety," although more than half of those held in the detention camp had no criminal record.