Marjorie Taylor Greene Gets Democrats to Turn on Biden

GOP Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene got Democrats to turn on President Joe Biden after forcing him to address the death of Laken Riley during his State of the Union address.

Biden drew backlash from members of his own party Thursday night after he said Riley “was killed by an illegal.” Liberal Democrats, immigration advocates and even Biden’s own campaign officials immediately took issue with Biden’s use of the term “illegal,” a term to describe undocumented migrants that had long been retired by Democrats.

But the president had never planned to utter those words. In fact, he was expected to say instead: “I will not demonize immigrants, saying they ‘poison the blood of our country,’ as [Donald Trump] said in his own words,” once Biden got to the part of his speech about one of his major political weaknesses—his immigration and border policy.

What triggered Biden to deviate from his prepared remarks and deliver his off-the-cuff comment was Greene, who heckled the president to “say her name,” a reference to Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student from Georgia who was killed in February. An immigrant from Venezuela who entered the U.S. illegally has been arrested and charged with murder.

“MTG’s success in bringing this issue to the forefront during the State of the Union cannot be underestimated,” political consultant Craig Agranoff told Newsweek. “It forced a national conversation on immigration and border security, topics that are undeniably divisive yet crucial.”

GOP strategist Matt Klink agreed. “Biden took MTG’s bait last night and finally mentioned Laken Riley by name. He was forced to admit that a criminal illegal alien, arrested multiple times previously, has been arrested for allegedly killing the young nursing student,” he told Newsweek.

The tragedy of Riley’s death had become a rallying call for some Republicans, who say that her killing shows how Biden is mishandling the migrant crisis at the southern border.

Arganoff said Biden’s willingness to engage with his critics, however, was a “double-edged sword.” On one hand, the president avoided having to face Republican backlash for ignoring the human costs associated with border policy failures. On the other hand, responding to his opponents and mentioning Riley allowed Biden to open himself up to criticism from both Democrats and Republicans over the wording he used in his remarks.

While Republicans blasted Biden for mispronouncing Riley’s first name as “Lincoln,” Democrats went after him for using the word illegal.

Shortly after Biden’s speech, Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar of Minnesota wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter): “Let me be clear: No human being is illegal.”

Representative Joaquin Castro, a Texas Democrat, called Biden’s words “dangerously close to language from Donald Trump that puts a target on the backs of Latinos everywhere.”

“I just don’t get why the president will go down that road,” Castro told The Texas Tribune. “I don’t think it’s helpful to him or to the Democratic Party.”

Even two of the Biden campaign’s national co-chairs spoke out. Mitch Landrieu admitted that the president should have used a different word than illegal, and Representative Veronica Escobar of Texas called it “not the language I use.”

“He probably should’ve used a different word, and I think he would know that. But what you should notice about that is not that he made a small mistake,” Landrieu told CNN on Friday. “The big thing that he did right, and this is what this president always does, is express empathy to people, he expressed kindness to people. He understands because, as you know, he lost a number of children in his life.”

Political consultant Jay Townsend told Newsweek that although Biden’s use of illegal is proof that “Biden is not as ‘woke’ as his detractors say he is,” his response to Greene was “a deft move” that allowed the president to acknowledge the border crisis and point to Congress’ inability to pass a border security bill.

“Had Biden not done what he did, MTG would be screaming today about Biden’s refusal to acknowledge what happened,” Townsend said.

“If he had not mentioned [Riley], Republicans would be attacking him for ignoring her,” political scientist John Pitney said. “Some progressive Democrats are unhappy that he used the term illegal, but most are giving him a pass because the only alternative to Biden is Donald Trump.”

Republican strategist Alex Patton said Biden’s “hiccup” wouldn’t “register outside the extremist MTG wing,” noting that it was the best speech he’s seen the president give over the past three years.

Klink, however, argued that the backlash Biden got for using the illegal only worsens problems for Democrats, making it seem as if the party cares little about Riley’s death.

“The progressive left is up in arms because Biden used the term illegal instead of undocumented. They are more concerned with the terms used than the actual murder itself,” he said. “Biden and his administration will continue to endure criticism because of failed border policies.”