¶ Overview
In 2025, Bobby Charles publicly praised Ron DeSantis’ “Alligator Alcatraz” detention facility and floated the idea of creating a similar immigrant detention camp in Maine. Ron DeSantis defended the Everglades detention center by claiming surrounding wildlife provided “natural security,” despite the facility’s risks to wetlands and South Florida’s drinking water supply. Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center faced a court-ordered shutdown after judges found the state and federal governments failed to account for environmental and legal requirements.
That same year, Bobby Charles said he wanted to close the northern border while aligning himself with Trump’s immigration agenda. At the same time, Trump’s border and tariff policies cut Canadian travel to Maine down by nearly 750,000 crossings and contributed to a 3.3% decline in retail sales and nearly 5% drops in restaurant and lodging sales in border communities. Trump also escalated diplomatic tensions with U.S. allies by posting an AI-generated image depicting Canada and Greenland under U.S. control, adding to cross-border uncertainty.
¶ Bobby Charles Celebrated DeSantis’ “Alligator Alcatraz” And Joked About Building A Similar Immigration Detention Site In Maine
¶ Bobby Charles Floated The Idea Of Creating A Maine Immigration Detention Facility While Praising Ron DeSantis’ “Alligator Alcatraz” Despite The Legal And Environmental Failures
¶ Bobby Charles Applauded DeSantis’ “Alligator Alcatraz” And Floated A Maine Version Of The Detention Camp
July 2025: Bobby Charles Praised Ron DeSantis’ “Alligator Alcatraz” And Joked About A Maine Immigration Detention Facility Named “Ice Block The Lobster Trap.” According to Charles’ Twitter, “Kudos to @RonDeSantis for Alligator Alcatraz . We need our own version in Maine. Any ideas on names ? I’m thinking the Ice Block the Lobster Trap?”
[Twitter, @Bobby4Maine, 7/3/25]
¶ Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” Detention Center Faced Court-Ordered Shutdown After Judges Found Environmental And Legal Violations
HEADLINE: “Judge Orders That ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Detention Center Be Shut Down For Now” [New York Times, 8/21/25]
DeSantis Claimed Everglades Wildlife Provided “Natural Security” For Detaining Immigrants Despite Risks To Fresh Water And Wetlands. According to WUSF, “When the facility opened, DeSantis said any detainees who escaped the makeshift jail would have to contend with wildlife. ‘They ain't going anywhere once they're there unless you want 'em to go somewhere, because good luck gettin' to civilization,’ he said during a press conference in June. ‘The security is amazing – natural and otherwise.’ Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park are neighboring regions in South Florida. The two are intertwined: Big Cypress lies northwest of the Everglades and supplies the wetlands with fresh water. It’s also a major source for South Florida’s drinking water.” [WSUF, 1/6/26]
August 2025: A Federal Judge Halted Transfers To Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” Detention Center And Ordered Portions Dismantled After Finding Legal Violations. According to the New York Times, “A federal judge on Thursday ordered that no more immigrant detainees be sent to a center in the Florida Everglades, and that much of the facility be dismantled. The ruling rebuked the state and federal governments for failing to consider potential environmental harms before building the facility, known as Alligator Alcatraz. […] The decision is a major legal setback for the detention center, the nation’s first state-run facility for federal immigration detainees, which has faced several lawsuits and numerous complaints about poor conditions and other problems. The state immediately filed a notice saying that it intended to appeal.” [New York Times, 8/21/25]
August 2025: Judge Ruled Florida’s Immigrant Detention Center Caused Irreparable Harm To The Everglades And Violated Federal Environmental Law. According to the New York Times, “The detention center presents risks to wetlands and to communities that depend on the Everglades for their water supply, including the Miccosukee, Judge Williams found. ‘The project creates irreparable harm in the form of habitat loss and increased mortality to endangered species in the area,’ she wrote. Her ruling is preliminary, as the case will continue to be litigated. The state is expected to ask that the ruling be stayed, or kept from taking effect, as it pursues its appeal. The Trump administration had argued that a review under the National Environmental Policy Act did not apply because while the center houses federal immigration detainees, it is run by the state. At the same time, the administration of Gov. Ron DeSantis argued that its authority to operate the detention center came from an agreement with the federal government delegating some immigration enforcement powers to Florida. In her ruling, Judge Williams said federal immigration enforcement is the ‘key driver’ of the detention center’s construction. Because it is subject to federal funding, standards and direction, it is also subject to federal environmental laws, she concluded.” [New York Times, 8/21/25]
¶ Bobby Charles Supported Closing The Northern Border Despite The Damage It Would Cause To Maine’s Relationship With Canada And Maine’s Economy And Cross-Border Communities
¶ Bobby Charles Called To Close The Northern Border
October 2025: Charles Said He Wanted To Close The Northern Border While Advancing Trump’s Policies. According to Bobby Charles at the 2025 Maine GOP Gubernatorial Candidate Forum, “CHARLES: Six things we could immediately, immediately work with him on. Let's enforce Title nine. How about that? Then let’s get those high intensity drug trafficking dollars up here and the substance abuse dollars up here. Then let's use his workfare policy so you don't get benefits if you're able bodied unless you work or volunteer or go to school. Then we end the wind and solar. We don't keep pushing that. Of course, we work for the nuclear. And then, we close the northern border. And we push more Navy contracts to be IW.” [Bobby Charles, Maine GOP Gubernatorial Candidate Forum, 10/18/25] (VIDEO)
¶ Trump’s Border And Tariff Policies Cut Canadian Tourism And Weakened Maine’s Border Economies
HEADLINE: “Trump’s Attacks On Canadians Are Hurting Maine’s Border Economies” [Maine Center For Economic Policy, 12/18/25]
December 2025: Canadian Travel To Maine Fell By Nearly 750,000 Crossings While Border Retail Sales Dropped 3.3% And Lodging And Restaurant Sales Fell Nearly 5%. According to the Maine Center for Economic Policy, “Since President Trump’s inauguration, Canadian visits to Maine have dropped sharply — nearly 750,000 fewer land crossings through November 2025 — with the largest decline in April (35% year-over-year). The Canadian boycott has hit Maine’s border economies hardest: taxable retail sales in border areas fell 3.3% between February and August 2025, while restaurant and lodging sales dropped nearly 5%, compared with growth elsewhere in the state.” [Maine Center For Economic Policy, 12/18/25]
- December 2025: Trump’s Tariffs And Immigration Policies Left Maine Border Communities More Isolated And Facing 3%–5% Sales Declines. According to the Maine Center for Economic Policy, “The data show just how damaging President Trump’s rhetoric and policies have been to Maine communities. Many small businesses run on very small margins, and a 3-5% drop in sales can create serious trouble for their finances. The data also demonstrates the way in which Maine and Canada are intertwined economically, especially in border communities. Some of these same areas have struggled economically for years and are the kinds of places President Trump promised to help. Instead, his aggressive foreign policy, chaotic approach to tariffs, and inhumane immigration crackdown have served to make these parts of Maine more isolated and economically worse off.” [Maine Center For Economic Policy, 12/18/25]
¶ Trump’s Rhetoric Toward Canada And Greenland Escalated Diplomatic Tensions And Border Uncertainty
January 2026: Trump Posted An AI-Generated Image Portraying Canada And Greenland Under U.S. Control. According to CNN, “The image may have been fake, but with each passing day Canada is coming to terms with the fact that the threat could be real. Canadians woke up Tuesday to an all-too-familiar troll ripping through their social media feeds. US President Donald Trump shared an image on Truth Social depicting him speaking to European leaders with an AI-generated map in the background, showing the US flag plastered over Canada, Greenland, and Venezuela.” [CNN, 1/20/26]
January 2026: Trump Complicated Canada’s Defense Planning Along The U.S. Border And Their Northern Border With Greenland. According to CNN, “But with Trump, Canada’s defense and strategic goals have become more complicated. Canada shares one of the world’s largest land borders with the US and one of the world’s largest maritime borders with Greenland. For decades, Canada has conducted joint defense operations and planning with both NATO and NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command), including a NORAD mission in Greenland this week.” [CNN, 1/20/26]