House Speaker Mike Johnson is issuing a stern warning to three Democratic lawmakers who confronted immigration officers at a New Jersey facility: face expulsion from Congress, or even jail time.
Representatives Bonnie Watson Coleman, LaMonica McIver, and Rob Menendez are accused by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) of “storming” into the Delany Hall facility, where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) intends to house detained migrants. However, video evidence seems to contradict this claim, showing that the lawmakers were peacefully exercising their right to provide oversight of the facility.
But Johnson made it clear that the GOP leadership is considering serious consequences.
“There’s three possible disciplinary actions that Congress, the House, could take,” he said. “Okay, you can censure a member, and that probably does seem appropriate here. You can kick them off committees. That’s a new tradition begun by the Democrats in recent years, and you can expel someone from Congress.”
The threats go beyond congressional punishments. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem appeared on Fox News and said the lawmakers “don’t deserve to be in the House” and should be censured. Tricia McLaughlin, a DHS spokesperson, suggested that the lawmakers could even face arrest, a view that Johnson supported.
“Now, expulsion requires a two-thirds vote, [and] that’s not likely because the margins are small on both sides, but we’re looking at what is appropriate,” Johnson said. “Look, I think it’s pretty clear the law was violated.”
Johnson drew a controversial parallel between the Democrats’ actions and a recent legal case involving a Wisconsin judge. Judge Hannah Dugan was indicted after allegedly helping an undocumented migrant evade ICE agents by directing him through a side door and falsely telling ICE that they needed a judicial warrant for the operation. She could face up to six years in prison and a $350,000 fine.
“A federal grand jury indicted the judge, I think that was late yesterday, and I’m told that she’ll be brought up on charges, maybe facing potentially six years in jail and $350,000 in fines,” Johnson said.
He continued, “What these House Democrats did is in that same lane, the same vein, as what the judge is being indicted for. So I think there’s some legal ramifications to play out here, and we’ll see how it works.”
Johnson’s remarks signal a harsh escalation in response to Democratic oversight of Trump’s immigration policy, suggesting that these actions could lead to not just congressional discipline, but potentially criminal charges as well.
Watch the clip below:
Johnson threatens House Dems with expulsion and worse: "It's pretty clear the law was violated. You might've noticed the Wisconsin judge… she's facing potentially six years in jail… what these House Democrats did is in that same lane as what the judge is being indicted for." pic.twitter.com/XTHipXOEVZ
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 14, 2025
