A police officer stands watch as activists protest outside of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility on Sept. 5, 2025 in Broadview, Illinois. Immigrants without legal status who have been detained undergo processing at the facility. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON — Attorneys on behalf of a dozen U.S. House Democrats Thursday pushed for a federal judge to force the Trump administration to comply with an appropriations law that allows for unannounced oversight visits at Department of Homeland Security facilities that detain immigrants.
“We don’t know what detention will look like in the future,” said Christine Coogle, a senior staff attorney for the group Democracy Forward, which represents the lawmakers.
Coogle argued before federal Judge Jia Cobb that because of the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration crackdown, the number of immigrants detained has ballooned. Coogle said that Democrats’ ability to conduct oversight visits without preapproval is not only needed, but already signed into law.
The suit, filed in the District Court for the District of Columbia, charges that the Trump administration has overreached its authority in creating a policy to require members of Congress give DHS seven days’ notice, plus approval from an agency official, before visiting a facility where immigrants are detained.
The suit also argues that the DHS policy is unlawful due to the appropriations law.
DOJ argues against Dems
Appearing on behalf of the Trump administration, Department of Justice attorney Alexander Resar said that the entire case will be moot in three business days, citing the looming government shutdown by next week. He argued that because the appropriations law will expire, lawmakers will not have the authority to conduct oversight provided under that provision.
Coogle pushed back and said that even the House’s seven-week continuing resolution to avoid a partial government shutdown, passed last week, contained the oversight provision.
“We expect it to be included,” in the fiscal year 2026 appropriations, Coogle said.
Resar also argued that because that provision is attached to appropriations law, the administration views it as not as enforceable as a separate law passed by Congress.
He added that Congress has multiple tools to conduct oversight of DHS facilities, such as withdrawing funding from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or impeaching officials. Republicans control both chambers in Congress as well as the White House.
Cobb questioned why two administrations, that of Biden and the first Trump administration, signed the appropriations bills into law for the past five years if they had an issue with the provision.
Resar said because the provision is attached to an appropriations bill, the Trump administration argues that it doesn’t reach the level of statutory authority.
Blocked from entry
Democrats detailed in their suit that since June, DHS officials have blocked them from entering facilities that detain immigrants.
Coogle said members of Congress being able to show up unannounced is an important tool, as in the past lawmakers have detailed how DHS has quickly made changes in preparation for planned visits.
She said some of those changes include painting facilities and moving detainees.
Resar argued that “if the facilities are being changed for the better,” then planned visits seem beneficial overall.
The oversight policy that allows members of Congress to show up unannounced at DHS facilities that detain immigrants, including ICE field offices, stems from the first Trump administration’s policy of separating children from their parents at the southern border in 2018.
At that time, Democrats such as Rep. Veronica Escobar of Texas, who represents the border town of El Paso, were unable to conduct interviews with separated immigrant families and often denied entry into the facilities.
That led to the inclusion of a provision in the fiscal year 2019 appropriations law that codified a member of Congress’ ability to conduct in-person oversight visits at DHS facilities where minors were detained.
The provision later was expanded to include all immigrants detained at DHS facilities, not just children, and allowed for unannounced visits by members and the inclusion of congressional staff to enter with their members during oversight visits.
Twelve Democratic House members are part of the suit including Joe Neguse of Colorado, Adriano Espaillat of New York, Jamie Raskin of Maryland, Robert Garcia of California, J. Luis Correa of California, Jason Crow of Colorado, Veronica Escobar of Texas, Dan Goldman of New York, Jimmy Gomez of California, Raul Ruiz of California, Bennie Thompson of Mississippi and Norma Torres of California.
