Florida’s migrant detention facility, nicknamed “Alligator Alcatraz,” became the latest battleground in the national immigration debate this week — not over policy, but over how visiting Democrat lawmakers allegedly tried to “create controversy” during their tour.

Kevin Guthrie, Executive Director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, appeared Monday night on Fox News’ “Jesse Watters Primetime” to recount what he described as a frustrating experience while giving a bipartisan group of lawmakers a tour of the facility. The group, which included several members of Congress and over a dozen state legislators, inspected the center on Saturday following mounting media pressure from the left.

But according to Guthrie, Democrats were less interested in facts than they were in performance.

“Absolutely. I think probably one of my favorites was an individual [who] had a thermometer, an infrared thermometer that they actually pointed at a light bulb, and it was 110 degrees,” Guthrie said, describing how one lawmaker allegedly tried to manipulate temperature readings to support claims the center was dangerously hot. “I said, ‘Let’s actually pull that down to where the ambient air is at and not point it at the light bulb.’”

The supposed “inhumane” conditions were immediately disputed by Republicans who accompanied the group. Florida State Sen. Blaise Ingoglia dismissed Democrats’ comments as “pure political theater,” telling Politico that the facility is “clean, air-conditioned, and well-kept.” He said, “The rhetoric does not match the reality.”

One of the loudest critics of the facility was Florida Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who accused the state of running an “internment camp.” She specifically cited the use of combination toilet-sink units as unsanitary and dehumanizing, even though they’re standard in detention settings across the country.

“These are standard mock-up toilet systems found in any secured facility,” Guthrie pushed back. “We meet and exceed either the national standard or Florida’s, whichever is higher.”

Wasserman Schultz also slammed the food — claiming detainees were being served “gray turkey and cheese sandwiches,” while officials received full chicken and sausage platters. Guthrie responded sharply, saying the congresswoman was several feet away from the sandwiches and likely couldn’t even see them clearly.

“She said it was a gray sandwich, but also asked if detainees could have seconds,” Guthrie pointed out. “So is it inedible or good enough to want more of?”

He also noted that the meals are the same as what patients receive in hospitals or what public school students ate under Michelle Obama’s lunch program.

Critics say the Democrats’ comments are part of a broader effort to undermine President Donald Trump’s strict immigration enforcement, including his pledge to carry out mass deportations. Already, Democratic lawmakers have taken symbolic trips to El Salvador to advocate for deported migrants or tried to interfere with deportation operations inside the U.S.

Republicans argue that the Biden-era chaos at the border created the need for facilities like Alligator Alcatraz in the first place, and now that the system is being brought back under control, Democrats are pivoting to smear the enforcement effort.

The sharp contrast between GOP and Democrat reactions underscores how polarizing immigration enforcement has become. Where one side sees necessary infrastructure, the other sees oppression. But for Guthrie and others responsible for running the facility, the complaints are more than political — they’re a distraction from the real work being done to secure the border and enforce the law.

As for the claim of 110-degree cells? Guthrie said it best: “They pointed the thermometer at a light bulb.”