Democrats have been screaming about conditions at a New Jersey ICE detention facility for weeks.
Tom Homan decided to go see for himself.
And what he found when he sat down for lunch with detainees at Delaney Hall is something the Left really doesn’t want you to hear.
Homan Shows Up Unannounced, Eats the Food
Border Czar Tom Homan appeared recently on Fox & Friends to push back hard on the Democrat narrative surrounding Delaney Hall, a privately run ICE detention facility in Newark, New Jersey that has become ground zero for left-wing protest theater.
Homan didn’t just defend the facility from a press podium. He walked in unannounced, toured every corner of the place, and sat down in the cafeteria with the detainees themselves.
“I went through every square foot in that facility,” Homan said. “I went through the bathrooms. I went through the detention area. I went to indoor and outdoor recreation. As a matter of fact, outdoor recreation has kind of a state of the art exercise equipment, which kind of shocked me.”
He heard the complaints about food. So he went back the next day, again unannounced, to find out for himself.
“I even did a surprise visit this weekend and walked into the cafeteria and ate the same meal that the detainees around me were eating,” Homan said.
The meal? Spaghetti and meat sauce, green beans, charro beans, rolls and butter, a drink, and dessert. “I ate it,” he said. And in a CBS News interview, he added: “The spaghetti was good. And I’m a pretty big guy and I didn’t finish the meal. I couldn’t finish the meal.”
Democrats Said Maggots. Homan Said Spaghetti.
The claims flying around from Democrat lawmakers have been, to put it charitably, dramatic. U.S. Representative Jerry Nadler, a Manhattan Democrat, claimed detainees were being given small portions of food that “very often” contain maggots and that the only medication available was Tylenol. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries put out a press release claiming his team “learned of unsanitary living conditions, lack of adequate medical care and unhealthy food.”
Homan’s response to all of it was blunt. “It’s all a false premise,” he said.
He went further, pointing out that the alleged hunger strike the media has been covering so breathlessly may not be what it appears. “There was never a hunger strike,” Homan said. “I found out they’re ordering food from the commissary and eating in their cells. So there wasn’t any abuse.”
That detail is worth sitting with for a second. The Daily Wire reported that a source familiar with the situation said the commissary snack store has actually seen an increase in sales, with detainees maxing out on items they’re allowed to purchase weekly.
Former ICE New York field office deputy director Scott Mechkowski didn’t mince words about it either. “I’ve seen real hunger strikes during my time as an ICE official, managing detention facilities,” he said. “What’s happening at Delaney Hall is not a hunger strike. When detainees are buying up Honey Buns and Snickers bars, and those with money are helping others get snacks, that’s not a hunger strike, it’s just a publicity stunt.”
The Real Goal Has Nothing to Do With Food
Homan said the quiet part out loud when a CBS News reporter pressed him on whether he had any concerns at all about the facility. He acknowledged it isn’t perfect, but he was crystal clear about what he believes this fight is actually about.
“It isn’t about the quality of detention, it’s about detention,” Homan said. “They don’t want these people detained, right? They want to shut down detention centers, and they want to abolish ICE. That’s what it’s all about.”
And he’s right. New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill has been threatening to shut the facility down. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka has reportedly sought to close Delaney Hall over alleged health and safety concerns. Democrat Senator Andy Kim visited, then posted on X that “Delaney Hall is a failure” and called for it to be shut down entirely.
But here’s what those same politicians haven’t answered: if the facility is so dangerous, why are detainees maxing out their commissary accounts? Why did Homan walk in unannounced twice and find a functioning facility with outdoor recreation equipment he described as “state of the art”?
DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin fired back at Governor Sherrill directly after she complained about the access she received during a recent visit. “On June 8th, I personally granted you access to the facility as an act of good faith — despite you having exactly ZERO federal oversight authority,” Mullin posted. “Of course, you’re still trying to turn Delaney Hall into a political football for the radical left.”
Mullin also pointed out that Delaney Hall has twice the medical personnel per detainee compared to New Jersey state prisons, at least twice the square footage, and that detainees are actually twice as likely to die in New Jersey state custody than at Delaney Hall.
That last number is the kind of thing that tends to get buried when the press is busy covering protesters setting tires on fire outside a detention center.
Protests That Crossed a Line
The scene outside Delaney Hall has gotten ugly. Protesters set tires and chairs on fire in the streets, threw makeshift projectiles, and at least 50 people were charged with curfew violations in a single night, according to senior law enforcement officials. A number of those arrested reportedly came from out of state.
State police set up designated protest zones and a nightly curfew after the situation escalated. Visitation rights to the facility were suspended due to the chaos outside.
And yet the political class in New Jersey keeps treating the rioters as the aggrieved party and the federal government as the villain. That’s a telling set of priorities.
Homan wasn’t rattled. He’s been doing this work for decades, and he knows the game. When Democrat politicians show up at a detention facility for a press opportunity, it’s not because they care about the detainees. It’s because they want the facility gone and ICE defunded. The food complaints are just the current vehicle for that argument.
But Tom Homan sat down with a tray of spaghetti and ate lunch. And he couldn’t even finish it.
Somebody should ask the Democrats who claimed the food was full of maggots whether they’re willing to do the same.
Sources: Mediaite; Fox News; CBS News; The Post Millennial; NBC New York; Townhall; Daily Wire