White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt lifted the lid on the Trump administration’s new migrant detention center in Florida, which he is visiting tomorrow.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Monday that a new migrant detention center will officially open tomorrow in Florida, drawing national attention for both its scale and its remote, wildlife-surrounded location.
Speaking during a press briefing, Leavitt described the site—located at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport—as a “new illegal alien detention center,” set to become a cornerstone of what she called “the largest mass deportation campaign in American history.”
President Trump is scheduled to attend the facility’s opening ceremony, alongside Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, Congressman Byron Donalds, and other state and local officials.
Nicknamed “Alligator Alcatraz”, the facility sits deep in the Everglades, flanked by treacherous terrain and dangerous wildlife. “There’s only one road in, and the only way out is a one-way flight,” Leavitt said, emphasizing its isolation.
Designed to hold up to 5,000 detainees, the center will focus on housing, processing, and deporting individuals with criminal records who entered the country illegally.
Asked whether the surrounding environment was intended as a security measure, Leavitt responded bluntly: “When you have illegal murderers and rapists and heinous criminals in a detention facility surrounded by alligators, yes, I do think that’s a deterrent for them to try to escape.”
The site, once envisioned as the “Everglades Jetport”, was originally slated to become the world’s largest airport before environmental concerns halted development in the 1970s. It now sits along the eastern boundary of Big Cypress National Preserve, roughly 55 miles west of Miami.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has echoed the administration’s stance, telling Fox News’ Laura Ingraham that the new facility is meant to boost deportation capacity. “All my sheriffs and police are working to apprehend illegals, but ICE just doesn’t have enough room. This will give them the space they need,” he said.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier added last week that the center’s location offers cost-saving benefits. “You don’t need to invest that much in security fencing when the Everglades are full of alligators and pythons,” he said.
The announcement has sparked immediate controversy, with immigration advocates denouncing the project as inhumane and environmentally reckless. Critics argue that the location and rhetoric surrounding the facility amount to state-sanctioned intimidation.
Environmental groups have also raised red flags, warning of damage to the delicate Everglades ecosystem. With the facility now set to open, legal and political challenges may follow closely behind.
