A group of Virginia Democrats from both chambers is pressing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to reinstall the federal workers who monitor the agency's immigrant detention centers.

The lawmakers say the employees of the Office of Detention Oversight (ODO), who have been furloughed during the weeks-long government shutdown, are critical to ensuring that detainees held by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are treated humanely. That’s especially true, they argue, because ICE law enforcement officers have continued to work over the same span, leading to a surge in detentions that’s strained the capacity of certain facilities.

In a letter sent Thursday to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, the Democrats called on the administration to return the ICE oversight staffers to the fiel

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