Trump floats possible Mayorkas arrest during 'Alligator Alcatraz' tour: 'Beyond incompetence'

President Donald Trump floated the possibility of investigating and arresting former Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas during his Tuesday tour of a new migrant detention facility in Florida dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz."
Responding to a question about why Mayorkas has yet to be arrested or held accountable for his handling of the southern border under former President Joe Biden, Trump asked if Mayorkas had been preemptively pardoned, like members of the U.S. House Select Committee on Jan. 6.
Upon learning Mayorkas received no such pardon, Trump said, “Well, I’d take a look at that because what he did was — it’s beyond incompetence. Something had to be done.”
Video of Trump’s response to my question: pic.twitter.com/rjNBH7hHEJ
— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) July 1, 2025
Trump went on to acknowledge that Mayorkas was acting on the orders of those above him, but noted he believes that is no excuse.
“I think he was so bad,” he said. “They were all so bad. Look, [Biden] was the worst president in the history of our country. We've had some bad ones, but he was the worst president. But somebody told Mayorkas to do that, and he followed orders, but that doesn’t necessarily hold him harmless. So, take a look at it.”
Mayorkas was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives in February 2024 on charges of misleading Congress and failing to enforce the laws, though his impeachment fizzled when the U.S. Senate acquitted him. During his remarks on Tuesday, Trump dismissed the impeachment of Mayorkas as “fake.”
Trump’s words about Mayorkas came after he toured "Alligator Alcatraz," the Florida state government's official name for the facility in Ochopee, Florida, which was built over eight days following an emergency order from Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Protesters, many of whom were environmental or Native American activists, have lined the nearby highway to protest the facility’s construction in recent days, according to The Associated Press.
Constructed on the site of a former airport, approximately 37 miles from Miami in the Everglades region, the facility is equipped with 3,000 beds and surrounded by swamps teeming with dangerous reptiles, including alligators and pythons.
"I looked outside and that's not a place I want to go hiking anytime soon," Trump said. "We're surrounded by miles of treacherous swampland and the only way out is really deportation."
Trump told reporters the facility will house the “worst of the worst” criminal illegal aliens as they await removal from the country. DeSantis, who was with Trump, told reporters that National Guardsmen will be deputized to serve as immigration judges, which will streamline migration hearings to within 48 hours.
Trump also reiterated his belief that the Biden administration’s policies were destructive.
"Nobody can ever forget what this group of people, Biden or whoever it was — it probably wasn’t even Biden, I don’t think he knew what the hell he was doing; a small group of people who surrounded the Resolute Desk — what they did to this country,” he said.
Jon Brown is a reporter for The Christian Post. Send news tips to jon.brown@christianpost.com