DHS adds Nebraska’s ‘Cornhusker Clink’ to ICE detention centers
The Department of Homeland Security is partnering with Nebraska’s Department of Correctional Services to set up a state-run migrant detention facility. Its name: “Cornhusker Clink.”
The facility, adding up to 280 beds at an existing minimum-security prison work camp, marks the third state partnership to increase U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s detention capabilities, DHS said in a news release. Indiana established the “Speedway Slammer” this month and Florida has been building out and operating “Alligator Alcatraz” - the subject of a number of lawsuits - since late June.
Cornhusker Clink will be set up at a minimum-security prison work camp in McCook, Nebraska, a city with a population of about 7,400 in the rural southwestern region of the state, about 230 miles from the state capitol of Lincoln. In addition to partnering with the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services for the detention center, the Nebraska State Patrol and National Guard will also be assisting in enforcement efforts, with approximately 20 Guard members acting as “administrative and logistical support” for the ICE enforcement efforts, the news release said.
President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill provided funding to secure 80,000 new beds for migrant detention, according to DHS. In a statement, Secretary Kristi L. Noem thanked Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen (R) for “his partnership to help remove the worst of the worst out of our country.”
Jane Kleeb, the Nebraska Democratic Party chair, called the creation of Cornhusker Clink “disgusting” and said Nebraskan voters will hold Pillen accountable. “Pillen and Trump have thrown due process out the window, all to appease their base,” Kleeb said in a statement. “They promised to go after criminals and instead have locked up hardworking moms and dads who contribute their skills to our agricultural economy.”
A handful of demonstrators showed up to the news conference announcing the detention center with signs reading “ICE is Gestapo” and “say no to concentration camps.”
The state partnerships come as part of Trump’s mass deportation efforts, which include plans to open or expand 125 facilities this year. Indiana’s Speedway Slammer is expected to expand ICE detention space by 1,000 beds, and Florida’s Alligator Alcatraz, which was constructed in eight days, is expected to house up to 3,000 detainees under harsh conditions in the Everglades. The American Civil Liberties Union and immigrant advocates, along with four detainees, filed a lawsuit in July over the conditions there, which include large tents over cells erected with chain-link fencing, portable showers and portable toilets.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) announced last week that in addition to Alligator Alcatraz, he was converting an old state prison into a second migrant detention center in a continuation of his aggressive stance on immigration. “Deportation Depot,” located in northern Florida, is expected to have the capacity for up to 1,300 detainees.