President Biden debated crimes committed by undocumented immigrants during his speech with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a right-wing lawmaker who has a history of interrupting State of the Union speeches, saying that in a recent incident a young woman “killed by a human being” became illegal.”
Mr. Biden’s use of the term sparked immediate backlash from liberal Democrats and immigration advocates, who accused the president of dehumanizing undocumented migrants by highlighting the killing and using the term “illegal.”
Mr. Biden’s comments to Ms. Greene caused the president to deviate from his prepared script. Mr. Biden had originally planned to draw attention to Donald J. Trump — his Republican predecessor and likely opponent in November — and his caustic language about immigrants. He was expected to say in his speech, “I will not demonize immigrants and say they are ‘poisoning the blood of our country,’ as he said in his own words,” referring to former president, which was sharply criticized late last year for repeating language similar to that used by leaders such as Hitler and Mussolini, as well as white supremacists.
But Ms. Greene, a Republican from Georgia, heckled Mr. Biden before he got to that part of the speech in a section on immigration policy. Mr. Biden urged Republicans to support a bipartisan border deal that had been negotiated in the Senate but abandoned by Republicans who had pushed for the legislation.
Wearing a bright red “Make America Great Again” hat and lapel pins referencing Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student from Georgia who was killed in February, Ms. Greene shouted at Mr. Biden, who had lost weight one of the pins honoring Ms. Riley on his way to the podium to give his speech.
Mr. Biden then turned to murder in his speech. Authorities have charged a Venezuelan migrant in the case who entered the United States illegally and was then released on parole.
“An innocent young woman killed by an illegal. That’s right,” Mr. Biden told Ms. Greene, using a term referring to the migrant that is favored by Republicans and criticized by many Democrats as dehumanizing.
But he quickly added that there are thousands of other murders that he appears to attribute to “legals.” Persons legally residing in the United States. Mr. Biden and White House officials have made similar comments about migrant crime in the past.
Democratic lawmakers and immigration advocates criticized Mr. Biden for clashing with Ms. Greene on the issue and using the word “illegal” to refer to undocumented migrants, many of whom are seeking political asylum or parole on humanitarian grounds.
“We were shocked to hear the president repeat the words of anti-immigrant extremists,” the National Immigrant Justice Center said in a statement. “Manipulating a personal tragedy for political purposes in this way is dangerous. Conflating immigration status and crime is racist and dehumanizing.”
Kica Matos, president of the National Immigration Law Center, also criticized Mr. Biden, saying he had “parroted dehumanizing Republican rhetoric about immigrants.”
Rep. Pramila Jayapal, chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, told an Associated Press reporter that she wished he hadn’t gone after Marjorie Taylor Greene and used the word “illegal.”
“As a proud immigrant, I am extremely disappointed to see President Biden use the word ‘illegal,'” said Rep. Chuy García, Democrat of Illinois.
Mr. Trump had regretted Ms. Riley’s death, but even border officials who worked for the former president during his time in office said most migrants crossing the border tended to be vulnerable families fleeing from poverty and violence rather than criminals. Studies have also repeatedly shown that immigrants are less likely to commit crimes than people born in the United States.
“I tell their parents that my heart goes out to you. I understand that I have lost children myself,” Mr. Biden continued.
Mr. Biden continued his speech and returned to his prepared remarks. “I will not demonize immigrants and say they are poisoning the blood of our country,” he said to applause.
Zolan Kanno-Youngs contributed reporting.
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2024-03-08 05:09:40
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