One member of the Georgia legislature says 9th Dist. Congressman Andrew Clyde and other Republicans commenting on the murder of a UGA students should back off of their criticism of the Biden administration’s immigration policies – at least for now. The suspect in the case is in this country illegally.
Democratic State Sen. Jason Esteves tells the AJC the victim’s family “deserves the opportunity to grieve.”
“Those who bring up border security should take that up with former President Trump, who just two weeks ago whipped congressional Republicans into shelving a bipartisan bill that would have helped secure our borders,” Esteves added.
Over the weekend, Clyde declared on X, formerly Twitter, that President Biden has “blood on his hands.”
Gov. Brian Kemp sent the White House a letter saying people deserve better – that they need to know who is entering the country illegally “due to your administration’s failures.” Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns weighed in by promising the House will be looking for ways to “strengthen the security of our state, acting” where Uncle Sam has failed. The state’s Insurance Commissioner, the first Hispanic elected to a statewide office, told the AJC that the Athens murder “highlights” the country’s lax immigration policies.
Meanwhiles, GOP congressman Max Collins, whose district includes Athens, issued a statement in which he pointed fingers at, among others, Athens itself because of its status as a “sanctuary city.” The Venezuelan suspect in Laken Riley’s murder, Collins said, is one of millions of illegal aliens that the Biden administration has released into this country to be welcomed with open arms by Democrat-run sanctuary jurisdictions.