Gov. DeSantis at a news conference on Thursday announced the state will “soon” open another jailing facility at the Baker Correctional Institution, which temporarily closed in 2021. It’s located in Sanderson, about 50 miles north of Gainesville and 50 miles west of Jacksonville.
It will be the state’s second detention center, following the so-called “Alligator Alcatraz,” constructed in just eight days and opened earlier this summer in the Everglades.
The new facility has been dubbed “Deportation Depot,” by officials.
The merch, listed for sale on the official Florida GOP online storefront, was launched by the party via social media Friday.
In a post on X, Florida GOP writes, “DEPORT DEPOT – Where Florida gets more done! We won’t back down to the radical left. Stand with @realDonaldTrump nad @GovRonDeSantis and take a stand!”
The merchandise — which includes T-shirts, a trucker hat, a coffee mug and beverage cooler — mimics the logo and branding of home improvement retailer Home Depot.
No word on whether the corporation is on board with the use of its image, but it’s no secret Home Depot’s leadership falls into the pro-Trump barrel. In a CNBC interview published this summer, Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone said he has “never been more excited about the future of America.”
The T-shirts (in white and black) are $28, the hat $27, the coolers $15 and the singular coffee mug is $25.
The Republican Party of Florida previously launched merch to coincide with the opening of the Everglades facility. It again includes T-shirts, beverage coolers and a hat, which depict cartoon images of alligators outside of what appears to be San Francisco’s shuttered Alcatraz Island prison.
Division of Emergency Management Director Kevin Guthrie said “Deportation Depot” will accommodate 1,310 beds and hold up to 2,000 people in a temporary capacity.
Guthrie said the facility will provide the same services offered at the Everglades center, which includes three meals a day, access to recreation yards, legal and clergy services, laundry and pharmacy, as well as “everything that is required under federal or state law,” The Florida Phoenix reports.
“This will be operational soon. It’s not going to take forever but we’re also not rushing to do it right this day. They’re doing what they need to do to get it done in all deliberate speed,” DeSantis said at the news conference Thursday.
The project will cost $6 million to build out, DeSantis said. If it were done at Camp Blanding, which he and other officials had previously discussed the possibility of, it would have cost “a lot more.”
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Florida GOP backs down, pulls ‘Deport Depot’ merch after Home Depot objects
This article appears in Aug 13-18, 2025.