DHS says the lawsuit is not about the environment but about stopping President Trump
U.S. Department of Homeland SecurityFederal department, through a statement sent to news outlets
A DHS statement says the suit is not about the environment but about trying to stop President Trump from making America safe again. It says critics on the left are feigning concern because they want people who entered illegally to stay forever and vote.
Responding to
The city's lawsuit is not about the environment but an attempt to stop President Trump's immigration enforcement.
“Let’s be honest about this. This isn’t about the environment. It’s about trying to stop President Trump from making America safe again.”
Reporting
Reporting
Where this statement fits
San Antonio sues DHS and ICE over a planned East Side detention facility, saying the agencies skipped environmental review
The City of San Antonio sued the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on October 13, 2026, to halt the conversion of a 640,000-square-foot East Side warehouse into an immigration detention and processing facility for up to 1,500 people. The city says the agencies bought the property and contracted for its renovation without the environmental review the National Environmental Policy Act requires. DHS said the suit is not about the environment but an effort to stop President Trump's immigration enforcement. Two council members called the lawsuit political theater.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
KSAT report on the lawsuit and news conference. It quotes the complaint, council members on both sides and the full statement DHS sent to the station.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Reporting
About this source
San Antonio Report coverage of the news conference announcing the lawsuit, with remarks from City Attorney Andy Segovia, Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones and council members, and a DHS statement.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
DHS sent the statement on the morning the city announced its lawsuit.
After the quotation
The statement says DHS is focused on removing criminal immigrants, that they should be removed quickly rather than housed at taxpayer expense, and that the department is moving swiftly to use existing detention space with state and county partners.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is DHS and ICE's plan to convert the warehouse at 542 SE Loop 410 into an immigration detention facility without first completing an environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act. DHS disputes the city's account of the lawsuit as an environmental matter and says its purpose is to stop the president's immigration enforcement, so we labeled it Challenged the characterization. The closest competing label is Defended or excused; it loses because the statement does not address whether the agencies needed an environmental review.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- City of San Antonio
More from this case
Read the full caseSan Antonio council member Misty Spears calls the city's suit against DHS and ICE political theater
“Suing the federal government for enforcing our nation’s immigration laws is political theater at taxpayers’ expense.”Read statement
Council member Marc Whyte says similar suits have only delayed federal projects and calls this one political theater
“What you’ve seen in other cities is it’s been delayed by some period of time where then the federal government’s got to go check a few boxes and then they can move forward.”Read statement
Jalen McKee-Rodriguez says his community does not want "a concentration camp" in San Antonio
“Whether you call it a detention center or a processing center, our community does not want a concentration camp anywhere in our country, much less our city”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "DHS says the lawsuit is not about the environment but about stopping President Trump". First published: 2026-10-20. Last updated: 2026-10-20. https://disputeindex.com/events/6258-a-dhs-statement-says-the-suit-is-not