Hilton Hotels got caught in a scandal Monday that had conservatives calling for boycotts.
The company rushed out an apology and promised immediate action.
But a Hilton hotel kept banning ICE agents hours after issuing this groveling apology.
DHS exposes hotel's ban on federal law enforcement
The Department of Homeland Security blasted Hilton Hotels Monday after the Hampton Inn in Lakeville, Minnesota canceled reservations for Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
DHS posted emails from the hotel dated January 2 stating "we are not allowing any ICE or immigration agents to stay at our property."
The hotel told agents "if you are with DHS or immigration, let us know as we will have to cancel your reservation."
The ban came as Trump deployed roughly 2,000 federal agents to Minneapolis for Operation Metro Surge targeting illegal aliens and investigating a massive welfare fraud scheme.
Federal prosecutors charged more than 90 people in Minnesota-based fraud cases since 2021, with potential losses in the billions.
Hilton quickly issued a statement claiming the Hampton Inn is "independently owned" and promising they "have been in direct contact with the hotel, and they have apologized."
The hotel's owner Everpeak Hospitality claimed it "moved swiftly to address this matter" and was "in touch with the impacted guests."
Both insisted the discrimination would stop immediately.
Journalist tests whether anything actually changed
Independent journalist Nick Sortor wasn't buying the corporate spin.
He walked into the Lakeville Hampton Inn Monday night around 11 p.m. – hours after the apologies went out – posing as a DHS employee.
The front desk manager told him straight up "we're not accepting people from Immigration, ICE agents, DHS into our property."
"That's just per management, ownership," the manager said.
Sortor pointed out the policy supposedly changed that day.
The manager said he just spoke with the owner who confirmed nothing had changed.
Sortor captured the entire exchange on video.
"They lied. Full of s***," Sortor said after walking out.
"Let's just say they f***ed around, and it's find out time."
The video showed Everpeak Hospitality's statement about "moving swiftly" and being "in touch with impacted guests" was complete garbage.
They never contacted DHS according to Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.
Hilton finally acts after getting exposed
Less than two hours after Sortor's video went viral, Hilton issued a new statement.
"The independent hotel owner had assured us that they had fixed this problem and published a message confirming this," Hilton stated.
"A recent video clearly raises concerns that they are not meeting our standards and values."
Hilton announced they were "taking immediate action to remove this hotel from our systems."
The company said they're "engaging with all of our franchisees to reinforce the standards" to prevent this from happening again.
Sortor's video proved what conservatives suspected all along – the apologies were meaningless PR spin.
The hotel and its owner Everpeak lied in official statements while continuing to ban federal agents trying to remove murderers, rapists, and gang members from Minnesota streets.
DHS Assistant Secretary McLaughlin confirmed the hotel never reached out to accommodate the agents they claimed to be helping.
Hilton only took real action after getting caught red-handed lying to the public.
The whole episode shows how some corporate executives think they can fool conservatives with empty statements while continuing to undermine law enforcement behind closed doors.
Operation Metro Surge has resulted in more than 400 arrests of illegal aliens including pedophiles and violent criminals who were protected by Minnesota's sanctuary policies.
These agents needed hotel rooms to continue removing dangerous criminals from the streets.
But this hotel owner thought banning federal law enforcement was more important than public safety.
They thought they could issue a fake apology and everyone would move on.
Nick Sortor made sure that didn't happen.
And now Hilton is scrambling to avoid getting Bud Lighted by angry conservatives who are sick of corporations siding with criminals over law enforcement.
Sources:
- Fox News, "ICE questions Hilton after it allegedly cancels immigration agent reservations," January 5, 2026.
- CBS News, "2,000 federal agents deploying to Minneapolis in immigration crackdown, fraud probe," January 6, 2026.
- RedState, "Hilton Axes Hotel From Their Systems After Video Shows Them Continuing to Ban DHS and ICE Agents," January 6, 2026.
- Fox 9 Minneapolis, "Hilton removing MN hotel that denied ICE bookings from its system," January 6, 2026.
- Bring Me The News, "Hilton pulls its name from Lakeville hotel after visit from right-wing influencer," January 6, 2026.
