Marjorie Taylor Greene says deporting Laken Riley would have saved her life in bizarre claim

Washington DC - In her latest attempt to politicize the murder of Laken Riley, Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene recently suggested that deporting Riley could have saved her life.

Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene is facing renewed criticism after she made a bizarre statement about the murder of Laken Riley during a recent House hearing.
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene is facing renewed criticism after she made a bizarre statement about the murder of Laken Riley during a recent House hearing.  © ALMOND NGAN / AFP

On Tuesday, the House Homeland Security Committee held a hearing to discuss budgeting issues and called on Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to testify.

Greene, who has led two aggressive efforts to impeach Mayorkas, used her time to grill the secretary and President Biden's administration for implementing an "open border."

She described the administration's immigration policies as "treason," arguing that migrants have "declared war on our citizens by raping our women, our children, and murdering people."

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"Like Laken Riley, you're familiar with her, right?" Greene asked of Mayorkas.

As the secretary responded, MTG interjected, "You should have deported her so that she could be alive today. Her parents would have appreciated that."

Riley was a 22-year-old nursing student at Augusta University in Greene's state of Georgia who was tragically murdered last month while out for a jog. Her alleged murderer is Jose Antonio Ibarra (26), a Venezuelan man who entered the country illegally in 2022 and remained in the US as his immigration case played out.

Greene's supporters have argued that she meant to say Riley's killer should have been deported, but the congresswoman has yet to issue a correction on her statement.

Marjorie Taylor Greene faces criticism from her own party

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene questioning Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas during a hearing in Washington DC on April 16, 2024.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene questioning Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas during a hearing in Washington DC on April 16, 2024.  © Chip Somodevilla / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP

Republicans have used Riley's story to shed light on the border crisis while furthering a narrative heavily pushed by the party's presidential nominee, Donald Trump – that immigration brings a rise in crime and drugs, and the blame should fall on Biden.

Greene trolled President Biden during his State of the Union address back in March, when she wore a MAGA hat and an outfit calling attention to Riley's story.

After the stunt, Riley's father, Jason Riley, said in an interview that while he too is a Trump supporter, it makes him "angry" that MTG and other Republicans continue to use his daughter's death as a means to get votes.

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Greene has been facing heightened criticism for her antics in recent weeks as she has led an effort to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson, which could result in Republicans losing their already thin majority in the House.

In an especially scathing opinion piece published on Wednesday, Fox News commentator Liz Peek called MTG an "idiot" and accused her of "trying to wreck the GOP."

Cover photo: ALMOND NGAN / AFP

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