ROXBURY -The feds have bought a Route 46 warehouse, so it's only a matter of time before ICE detainees are housed there.

Well, maybe.

The purchase was reported by the Gothamist, a news website associated with WNYC, a public radio station.

Township officials, who oppose the idea, say they have not been told that.

Anthony M. Bucco, the township attorney,  made two points Wednesday afternoon.

One was that the Department of Homeland Security has not confirmed the purchase.

Second was that Dalfen Industrial, the warehouse owner, says there has been no sale.

Are these involved simply fibbing before everything becomes official? That's certainly a possibility.

On the other hand, maybe the report is erroneous.

Nonetheless, just the news of a sale and the prospect of ICE detainees coming to this suburban Morris County town reverberated Wednesday across the political landscape.

Cory Booker sent out a release condemning the possibility.

Andy Kim, his fellow senator, and the state's eight Democratic House members, did likewise.

Leading this effort was Rep. Bob Menendez, who in a separate statement observed:

"From Minnesota to New Jersey, we've seen what happens when ICE comes into our communities, from taking a 5-year-old child into detention to killing American citizens in broad daylight."

Let's stop here.

Menendez' Hudson County-centered district is very Hispanic, so in that way, it is logical for him to take the lead on this.

But still, how about Tom Kean Jr., whose district is where the warehouse is located?

Was Kean asked to join his fellow House members? That is unclear.

A call to Kean's office asking his thoughts on the latest news has not been returned.

Not surprisingly, Morris County Democrats have been energized.

The county committee sent out a release that reviewed a 500-strong protest against an ICE warehouse Monday in Roxbury.

It added:

"We are particularly alarmed, if not surprised, by the inaction of Congressman Tom Kean Jr., who has repeatedly failed to speak out against ICE’s expansion in Morris County. Kean’s apathy effectively signals approval of ICE’s overreach and the continuing abandonment of his responsibility to represent the full interests of his constituents."

Simultaneously, the Dems also called for the state lawmakers representing the district (the 24th) - Assembly members Dawn Fantasia and Mike Inganamort and Sen. Parker Space - to speak out against the proposed facility.