NEW YORK – President Donald Trump says he is directing his government to reopen and expand Alcatraz, the notorious former prison on a California island.

In a message on his Truth Social site Sunday evening, Trump wrote that, “For too long, America has been plagued by vicious, violent, and repeat Criminal Offenders, the dregs of society, who will never contribute anything other than Misery and Suffering. When we were a more serious Nation, in times past, we did not hesitate to lock up the most dangerous criminals, and keep them far away from anyone they could harm. That’s the way it’s supposed to be.”

“That is why, today, I am directing the Bureau of Prisons, together with the Department of Justice, FBI, and Homeland Security, to reopen a substantially enlarged and rebuilt ALCATRAZ, to house America’s most ruthless and violent Offenders,” he wrote, adding: “The reopening of ALCATRAZ will serve as a symbol of Law, Order, and JUSTICE.”

The prison was closed in 1963, and Alcatraz Island is currently operated as a tourist site.

The order comes as Trump has been clashing with the courts as he tries to send accused gang members to a notorious prison in El Salvador, without due process. Trump has also talked about wanting to send American citizens there and to other foreign prisons.