Members of the United States Congress have recently faced major difficulties in carrying out their required oversight duties at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers. This repeated blocking of access, especially by the Trump administration, is causing serious concerns about whether federal law is being followed and whether immigration operations are being conducted transparently.
Lawmakers say the government has been breaking federal laws by refusing them entry to these facilities, even though they have a clear legal right to inspect them without giving advance notice. According to The Guardian, this refusal to respect congressional authority is leading to demands for accountability and has resulted in multiple legal challenges against the administration’s policies.
One well-known example of this denial involved Arizona Congressman Greg Stanton. Stanton, who represents Arizona’s fourth congressional district, tried to visit Kelly Yu, a local restaurant owner who had been held at the Eloy detention center in Eloy, Arizona, since late May. Yu’s husband asked Stanton to visit after community members connected the family with the congressman’s office, but he was barred for no good reason.
Lawmakers are being kept from doing their jobs by ICE
Yu has lived in the U.S. for more than twenty years and is known as a positive contributor to her community, providing jobs and working with local organizations. She has no criminal record but was arrested during a routine monthly immigration check-in, even though her asylum case was denied back in 2005. Stanton wanted to check on Yu’s well-being, bring attention to her case, and see the conditions inside the facility.
When he arrived at the Eloy detention center, ICE officials told him they were following new rules from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that now require at least seven days’ notice before any congressional visit. Even though Stanton showed them a copy of federal law, which clearly states that no advance notice or approval is needed, the officials still refused to let him in.
Senator Chris Van Hollen says ICE blocked him and other lawmakers from entering a facility, despite having a legal right to do so.
— WarMonitor (@TheWarMonitor) July 29, 2025
“They just don’t want the American people to see what’s happening behind closed doors.” pic.twitter.com/ShgXR4tdSw
The congressman said, “Every time the Trump administration violates the law – whether it’s through impoundment or illegal terminations of government employees or systematic denial of due process rights, or denying members of Congress their obligation and right to visit a detention center – it all has to be challenged legally. We can’t look the other way. This is we operate under the rule of law, and this administration does not get to violate the rule of law. You can imagine that we will seek recourse.”
It is not good that a place like this needs a week in advance before people who keep them in check can see. It’s not hard to imagine how much can be hidden in a week. I worked in a real prison, and I guarantee that having oversight at a moment’s notice is really important.
The incident with Congressman Stanton is not the only one. Other Democratic members of Congress have reported similar problems since the last presidential administration took office. In one notable case in May, New Jersey Representative LaMonica McIver was reportedly accused of assault and interfering with immigration officials after she tried to enter a detention center to exercise her congressional oversight rights.
These repeated denials have led to major legal action. A group of twelve U.S. House members recently filed a lawsuit against the administration, accusing it of blocking congressional oversight of immigration detention centers. The lawsuit argues that the administration’s policy requiring advance notice and approval for visits is illegal and demands that lawmakers be allowed access without having to give prior notice.
The Trump administration officially put this advance notice policy in place in June. This change came after many Democratic officials across the country tried to visit facilities and check on people being held there. These efforts by Democrats are part of a larger push to hold the administration accountable as deportations increase and as the administration appears to ignore established legal rules.
