By Charlie McCarthy | Thursday, 28 May 2026 08:29 AM EDT
Protesters targeting immigration enforcement operations in New Jersey are taking a page out of the left’s “playbook,” former acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf stated.
Appearing on a recent program, Wolf said leftist activists have spent years trying to dismantle immigration detention facilities by raising claims about conditions inside centers and disrupting federal enforcement efforts.
“This is the left that doesn’t like immigration detention,” Wolf said. “They want all of these facilities closed down.”
The protests outside Delaney Hall ICE detention facility in Newark have now stretched into nearly a week, with demonstrators attempting to block detainee transfers and clashing with federal officers. Some detainees and their attorneys have alleged poor conditions and a hunger strike inside the facility, claims federal officials dispute.
Wolf dismissed many of the complaints as part of a familiar political strategy.
“They’ll talk about subpar treatment conditions. They’ll talk about the food. They’ll talk about everything,” Wolf said. “This is their playbook. They have used this for the last 10 years.”
The Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday that multiple arrests had been made after what officials described as violent protests interfering with federal immigration operations. DHS stated some demonstrators assaulted officers and obstructed law enforcement personnel carrying out arrests of illegal aliens with criminal records.
“These violent rioters will NOT slow us down in our mission to REMOVE criminal illegal aliens from New Jersey,” DHS said in a statement.
Wolf defended the detention operations, arguing the facilities house individuals who violated U.S. immigration law, including some with serious criminal histories.
“This isn’t summer camp,” Wolf said. “This is a detention facility where people are housed until they’re removed out of the country.”
He also pushed back on criticism from Democrats and immigration activists over conditions inside the centers, noting federal detention standards are often stricter than those used in many local jails.
The former DHS chief also criticized Democrat politicians who joined the protests, including New Jersey Senator Andy Kim, who reportedly was hit with pepper spray during one demonstration.
“This is performative art at its best,” Wolf said, accusing some lawmakers of obstructing federal officers while claiming to be peacefully protesting.
“When they do that, they break the law,” he added, saying officers have the authority to use less-lethal measures to clear roadways and maintain access to the facility.
Federal officials have vowed immigration enforcement operations in New Jersey will continue despite the unrest, with DHS emphasizing that “law and order will be restored.”
