Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, who first suggested building the $450 million-per-year facility at a small airport in the middle of the Everglades, garnered praise from conservative leaders around the country for the project.

Democratic Florida lawmakers who attempted to enter "Alligator Alcatraz" on Thursday were barred after they expressed "humanitarian concerns" about the new Everglades detention center.

Five Florida state Democrat lawmakers on Thursday were denied access to the state's newly opened "migrant" detention facility that has been dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz."