The Warning with Steve Schmidt Spring in Arizona: baseball, sunshine & ICE detention centers
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Mar 21, 2026 Adelita Grijalva, Arizona freshman representative focused on human rights, and Sara Jacobs, California representative advocating against family detention, join Maritsa Georgiou, on-site reporter covering proposed ICE facilities in Arizona. They discuss the Surprise and Marana sites, nationwide DHS facility purchases, restricted access to facilities, local clergy and activist responses, and infrastructure and legal challenges facing communities.
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ICE Network Could Outsize Federal Prisons
- DHS is building a nationwide network of massive ICE detention centers that could exceed the size of the federal prison system.
- Miles Taylor noted the planned ICE bed capacity may surpass the entire Federal Bureau of Prisons, creating a parallel, larger incarceration system.
Procurement Workarounds Hide Contract Details
- Many facility purchases and contracts appear to have bypassed standard procurement, environmental review, and public comment.
- Steve Schmidt highlighted purchases at multiples above assessed value and use of DoD contracts as a workaround to normal transparency.
Shuttered Marana Prison Reopened For ICE Intake
- Maritza Georgiou reported from Marana where a shuttered state prison bought back by its original operator is proposed as an ICE intake center.
- The facility housed ~500 inmates, was sold last year for $15 million, and DHS plans could expand capacity to about 775 detainees.