(NewsNation) — President Joe Biden called on Congress to send him the bipartisan border bill, saying, “Get this bill done. We need to act now.”
Biden’s remarks during Thursday’s State of the Union address spurred vocal pushback from Republicans during his speech, who pointed to a Georgia college student whom police say was killed by a Venezuelan man who entered the country illegally.
Republican lawmakers invited guests who focused heavily on what they consider the nation’s broken immigration system. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., yelled, “It’s about Laken Riley,” and others shouted, “Say her name.”
The president acknowledged Riley’s death, saying, “Laken Riley, an innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal. To her parents, I say my heart goes out to you, having lost children myself. I understand.”
But the president remained on the topic of immigration.
Immigration has become a hot-button issue this election year, and the president’s pressure on Congress to pass a border security bill comes after Republicans rejected a bipartisan proposal out of the Senate that had the White House’s backing.
“I’m told my predecessor called Republicans in Congress and demanded they block the bill. He feels it would be a political win for me and a political loser for him. It’s not about him or me. It’d be a winner for America,” Biden said.
