Ilhan Omar and other Democrats blocked from ICE visit after Minneapolis shooting
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Rep. Kelly Morrison, Rep. Ilhan Omar and Rep. Angie Craig arrive at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in St. Paul during an oversight visit Saturday in Minneapolis. Photo: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg
Three Minnesota congressional Democrats — including Rep. Ilhan Omar — were denied access to an ICE detention facility just outside Minneapolis on Saturday morning.
Why it matters: The incident outside the Whipple Federal Building in St. Paul comes amid escalating tensions and protests over an ICE agent's fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
What they're saying: Omar said during a press conference she wants people to know, "this is a blatant disregard of the law."
- Reps. Angie Craig and Kelly Morrison, who represent suburban Twin Cities congressional districts, were also present and denied access after they were initially let in.
- Omar said she called first to say she and the other representatives were coming, They were initially let in, but Omar claimed two officials then got a message "that we were no longer allowed," declining any further access to the building.
- Omar and the other lawmakers also said they were told that because the facility was funded under the Big Beautiful Bill Act, they could be denied access.
Zoom in: Omar said she saw two planes taking off, and was told they were not deportation flights, but were taking detainees to other U.S. facilities.
- She said when asked, officials also claimed detainees weren't held long enough to need hygiene products, a claim Omar refutes.
The other side: Homeland Security assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement emailed to Axios, the congressional representatives were denied a tour of facilities for "the safety of detainees and staff, and in compliance with the agency's mandate."
- She said, "the Members of Congress were notified that their visit was improper and out of compliance with existing court orders and policies, which mandate that members of Congress must notify ICE at least seven days in advance of Congressional visits."
Context: A federal judge issued an order in December blocking that seven-days-notice policy.
The big picture: Members of Congress have dramatically increased their visits to ICE facilities over the last year, as detentions swelled after the Trump administration's expanded immigration enforcement efforts, Axios' Brittany Gibson reports.
- The increased focus on congressional oversight resulted in 165 such visits in the 2025 fiscal year —more than the previous three years combined.
Zoom out: By law, members can visit ICE detention sites at any time. But the agency has tried to limit that access, accusing Democratic lawmakers of using the visits for political theatrics.
- Some oversight visits have been particularly contentious, including a May incident outside a new ICE facility that led to an indictment against Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.).
What we're watching: More protests are expected in the Twin Cities and across the nation over the weekend.
- Reported plans of an additional surge in agents in the Twin Cities, and the Trump administration's "highly unusual" decision to kick local investigators off the probe has further complicated the situation on the ground.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with a Homeland Security statement.