Top Florida Democrats issued blistering responses on Wednesday following a TPM report that detailed how Sunshine State Gov. Ron DeSantis diverted “disaster preparedness” resources in the rush to build the “Alligator Alcatraz” migrant detention camp.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), who toured the site earlier this month and subsequently decried the conditions there, sentd a statement to TPM blasting every aspect of the project.
“DeSantis already operates under a cloud of corruption when it comes to stealing taxpayer dollars. So, it’s no surprise he’d siphon off and create shortfalls in our hurricane preparedness funds for this boondoggle, then hide it from the public, or that he’d hand out sweetheart contracts to donors to build this monument to cruelty and denied due process,” Wasserman Schultz said. “This internment camp is an outrageously wasteful publicity stunt, designed to hurt immigrants and distract from reckless Republican policies that will double the ranks of Florida’s uninsured.”
Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried similarly questioned the purpose of the facility and the fact emergency equipment was pulled to the site.
“Ron DeSantis is gambling with Floridians’ lives. Diverting critical emergency communications equipment during hurricane season is not just irresponsible—it’s dangerous,” Fried said in a statement to TPM. “First responders need every tool at their disposal to save lives. Instead, the Governor is raiding hurricane response resources for political games.”
TPM’s report was based on an in-depth analysis of contracts related to the construction and operation of the controversial detention camp. We identified $19,983,785.03 in contracts and invoices that were earmarked for nine different firms. Eight of those companies were not previously known to have been involved with the project. One of the contracts was created on July 1 and provided for $499,869.60 to be paid to Baker’s Electronics & Communications Inc. for an “Atlas trunked radio system.” That platform is often used by public safety agencies for critical and emergency communications.
The contract specified that the Atlas systems “deployed” at the detention camp had been “pulled from disaster preparedness platform” [sic]. The document further indicated that, as a result of that diversion, the system needed to “be back-filled to prevent a response gap during hurricane season given the unknown duration of detention center operation.” In Florida, Hurricane season runs from June 1 until November 30. DeSantis’ office, which was listed as the agency responsible for the contract, did not respond to a request for comment.
“Alligator Alcatraz” is part of DeSantis’ efforts to support President Donald Trump’s “mass deportation” agenda. Florida is footing the initial spending on the hastily-built project, which reportedly will cost $450 million a year. Previous reporting from the Miami Herald has exposed how DeSantis donors are among the vendors who have been awarded contracts to work on the effort. The contracts uncovered by TPM show how there was a flurry of spending including some “rush” fees and how work is ongoing even as detainees have already been brought to the site.
Wasserman Schultz and Fried have both been among the more outspoken critics of the facility. In interviews, Wasserman Schultz has described horrific conditions she saw at the camp including people packed “wall to wall.” She has called for the site to be shut down. On Monday, the state party announced it filed a formal public records request “seeking all documents related to the state contracts behind the internment camp known as ‘Alligator Alcatraz.’” In a statement accompanying that announcement, Fried suggested the facility was a potential source of corruption, an “environmental disaster,” and “a human rights crisis.”
