Noem Requires Seven Days' Notice for Congressional ICE Visits — Then Lawmakers Are Turned Away in Minneapolis

On January 8, 2026, the day after ICE agent Jonathan Ross fatally shot Renée Good, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem issued a memo reinstating a seven-day advance-notice requirement for members of Congress seeking to visit immigration detention facilities. Noem said unannounced visits pull officers from their duties and risk becoming "circus-like publicity stunts." On January 10, Representatives Ilhan Omar, Angie Craig and Kelly Morrison were denied entry to the Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis under the new policy.

Federal appropriations law has long guaranteed members of Congress access to immigration detention sites without prior notice, and a nearly identical DHS policy had already been temporarily blocked by U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb in December 2025. DHS argued the new policy was funded through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act rather than annual appropriations and therefore fell outside the statutory access guarantee. Lawyers for the lawmakers responded that the department could not realistically run detention facilities without annually appropriated money, making the distinction unworkable.

House Democrats returned to court arguing the revived policy violated the existing order, and a federal judge subsequently lifted the restrictions on lawmaker visits.