Democrats spent two weeks rioting outside Delaney Hall ICE detention facility demanding it be shut down.
Tom Homan walked in without warning.
What he brought out ended the argument — and Democrats have no answer for it.
Delaney Hall Hunger Strike Was a Lie and Homan Proved It
Since Memorial Day weekend, New Jersey Democrats made it their mission to convince America that the Delaney Hall ICE detention facility was a dungeon.
Governor Mikie Sherrill demanded it be shut down.
Newark Mayor Ras Baraka filed a lawsuit and deployed protesters at the gates.
Hakeem Jeffries flew in from Washington, stood outside with a camera, and declared detainees had "no criminal record" – skipping the inconvenient fact that entering the country illegally is a crime.
Rep. Jerry Nadler went further and claimed the food had maggots.
Two weeks of burning barricades, homemade shields, and chants of "every cop, every fed, shoot yourself in the head" followed those claims outside the facility.
Tom Homan made a surprise visit this past weekend.
No advance notice or staged tour.
He walked straight into the cafeteria and sat down.
"I made sure my tray equaled their tray," Homan told Fox News. "I had spaghetti and meat sauce. I had beans. I had green beans. I had bread and rolls. I had drinks. I had dessert."
"The food was good."
He also walked through the medical wing, outdoor recreation, and indoor recreation – the entire facility.
"There wasn't any abuse," he said. "There's not inhumane conditions. I went through the entire facility."
Then he killed the hunger strike story.
Detainees who skipped the cafeteria were buying food from the commissary and eating in their cells.
Former ICE New York field office deputy director Scott Mechkowski confirmed it: "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."
What Rep Van Drew Found Inside Delaney Hall Democrats Never Mentioned
Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew (NJ-02) also toured Delaney Hall and came back with a very different story than Jeffries.
The dorms were clean. There were doctors, nurses, and dentists on site, plus both a law library and a regular library. Detainees had access to a gym and a soccer field, and the kitchen was preparing separate meals for allergies, kosher requirements, and medical restrictions.
"So let's stop pretending this is about conditions," Van Drew wrote. He called the Democrat campaign "bad political theater" and said they were "just lying to us."
Jeffries, by contrast, offered a press release claiming detainees faced "unsanitary living conditions" and "unhealthy food" — with no names, no dates, and no specific examples to back any of it up.
Homan noticed. "You're making all these allegations," he said. "Give me an example. Give me a name. Give me a date. Who was abused? Who wasn't given medical attention? Give me the specifics."
Nothing came back.
DHS called out eight Democrats by name – Sherrill, Booker, Kim, Menendez, Pou, McIver, Pallone, and Majia – for choosing Memorial Day weekend to spread what the department described as smears against ICE law enforcement.
Democrats Used the Same ICE Detention Smear in Illinois and Got Caught
Democrats ran a nearly identical play in Illinois last November — congressional visits, press releases about inhumane conditions, protesters at the gates.
DHS issued a debunking statement naming Illinois Democrats by name, and local law enforcement contradicted the claims on the ground.
The goal is never the conditions inside the building.
The goal is to make voters believe ICE agents are criminals – so that when Trump enforces laws that have been on the books for decades, it looks like cruelty instead of governance.
ICE detention standards are higher than federal prisons.
Homan made that clear: "Look at ICE's detention standards – the highest detention standards in the industry, better than any state prison, county jail, or federal lock-up."
Nadler said maggots.
Homan sat down and ate the meal.
Delaney Hall isn't closing, the detainees aren't being released, and the radical Left is going to need a better lie.
Sources:
- "DHS Debunks New Jersey Sanctuary Politicians' Smears Against ICE Facility," Department of Homeland Security, May 25, 2026.
- Stephen Sorace and Michael Dorgan, "Homan Vows ICE Detention Facility Isn't Going Anywhere Despite Democrats' Push to Shut It Down," Fox News, June 2, 2026.
- "Tom Homan Debunks Dem Claims of Inhuman Conditions at NJ Delaney Hall ICE Facility After Going There, Eating the Food," The Post Millennial, June 2, 2026.
- David Marcus, "5 Blatant Lies Democrats Are Spreading About Delaney Hall and ICE," Fox News, June 1, 2026.
- "Homan Visits Newark Facility, Warns Sherrill That Delaney Hall Isn't Going Anywhere," SaveJersey.com, June 2, 2026.