President Donald Trump said he would like to see more immigration detention centers constructed across the United States, describing the recently opened “Alligator Alcatraz” facility in Florida as a potential model for broader use, including long-term incarceration.
Speaking during a roundtable at the site, Trump was asked how many more centers the country would need to meet the goals of his proposed mass deportation plan.
“I’d like to see them in many states. Really, many,” he said. “This one was built in under a week. It’s incredible.”
Trump praised Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and the development team for completing the facility quickly, calling the location “natural” and potentially “as good as the real Alcatraz site.”
He also suggested that facilities like Alligator Alcatraz could evolve beyond temporary holding centers. “At some point, they might morph into your prison system,” he said. “Which I know you always need, unfortunately.”
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The facility currently houses individuals awaiting immigration proceedings and deportation. But Trump also addressed broader public safety concerns, indicating that violent offenders, including those born in the U.S., should be removed or held separately.
“We have a lot of bad people that have been here a long time,” he said. “People who push strangers in front of subway trains. People who hit others from behind with baseball bats. These are not accidents. These are sick people.”
He went on to say that while many offenders were undocumented immigrants, others were American citizens who, in his view, no longer belong on U.S. streets.
“I think we ought to get them the hell out of here, too,” Trump said, suggesting that future efforts could target both undocumented individuals and long-standing residents with violent records.
Trump described recent violent incidents in New York as deliberate acts, not random crimes. “They were done very much on purpose,” he said. “We forget about these people.”
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The remarks come as immigration remains a central theme of Trump’s 2024 campaign message. While much of the focus has been on border security and enforcement, Tuesday’s comments pointed to a possible shift in scope—connecting immigration infrastructure with broader criminal justice priorities.
Trump did not specify whether future detention sites would be federally funded, state-managed, or operated through partnerships like the one used for the Florida facility.
For now, the Alligator Alcatraz site is operational and housing detainees. And if Trump has his way, more centers like it could soon follow. Whether that includes expanding them into permanent prisons or simply multiplying their footprint across states is unclear. But his position was direct.
“We always need places like this,” he said. “Unfortunately.”
