This week, President Donald Trump visited a newly opened migrant detention facility in South Florida, nicknamed “Alligator Alcatraz.” While onsite, Trump praised Alabama and other Republican-led states for establishing similar operations.
The facility, located at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in the Florida Everglades, is designed to detain undocumented migrants relocated from local jails. It operates out of repurposed FEMA trailers and temporary, soft-sided structures, according to a report by AL.com. The installation is expected to initially accommodate approximately 3,000 detainees, with a potential capacity of up to 5,000. Mobile equipment provides water, sewage, and power, and annual operating costs are estimated at $450 million.
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Trump toured the site alongside Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. During the visit, he pointed to Alabama and Louisiana as examples of states following Florida’s lead, saying Republican-run states were stepping up where Democratic-run states were not.
“We have Louisiana doing it. Alabama is doing it,” said Trump. “We have a lot of states — they seem to be red states; not too many blue states, for whatever reason. The red states, Republican-run states are doing it. The blue states don’t do very well at security and policing, unfortunately.”
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The Florida facility, which has been referred to by officials as “completely self-contained,” is intended as part of a broader deportation effort, which the Trump administration has said is aimed at discouraging illegal immigration.
Two companies in south Alabama have recently been awarded federal contracts to help expand detention bed capacity nationwide for the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, AL.com also reported.
According to PBS reporting, the project has drawn legal challenges from environmental groups.
For footage of Trump’s tour and his remarks, the video from Fox News 35 Orlando is available here,
Sherri Blevins is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You may contact her at [email protected].
