In case you hadn't heard (some of the headlines buried it), Athens resident Jose Antonio Ibarra, a Venezuelan who was arrested in connection with the killing of 22-year-old Augusta University College of Nursing student Laken Riley, was in the country illegally. As we said, some outlets ignored Ibarra's immigration status altogether; other media outlets, like the Associated Press, not only left out that detail but chose instead to focus on the dangers facing women who run alone.
Never fear: Of course the mainstream media was going to do a "Republicans pounce" story; the only question is who would do it first. The winner seems to be NBC News, which has come up with a new word to replace "pounce" and "seize": "invoke."
Republicans at the state and national levels are pointing to the death of a woman on the University of Georgia campus in their push for tougher immigration tactics after an undocumented immigrant was charged in the killing of 22-year-old Laken Riley. https://t.co/VeAtjoOrwn
— NBC News (@NBCNews) February 27, 2024
The tweet says Republicans are pushing for tougher immigration tactics, but the headline says they're pushing for "hard-line immigration policies."
NBC News. pic.twitter.com/siGyB450DL
— Tom Bevan (@TomBevanRCP) February 27, 2024
Megan Lebowitz writes about the "undocumented" immigrant:
Republicans at the state and national levels are pointing to the death of a woman on the University of Georgia campus in their push for tougher immigration tactics after an undocumented immigrant was charged in the killing of 22-year-old Laken Riley.
…
Ibarra, who lived in Athens, where the University of Georgia is based, had been arrested by U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Sept. 8, 2022, after he crossed into the U.S. He was paroled and released for further processing, according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, also used Riley’s death to criticize the Biden administration.
“It’s outrageous we still have no idea who is entering this country illegally and where they’re being released,” Kemp said Sunday on X. “Americans have a right to this information, and I’m demanding the Biden administration provide it so we don’t lose even more innocent lives like Laken Riley’s.”
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Is Gov. Brian Kemp wrong? House Speaker Mike Johnson tweeted that we President Joe Biden should "close the border." Those sure sound like hard-line immigration policies.
“Republicans pounce”
— JR (@J_Moore1292) February 27, 2024
@NBCNews are you trying to spin this as the Republicans are bad? Seriously?
— Ken Sprague (@KenSprague5) February 27, 2024
Laken Riley is one of many victims of serious crimes committed by illegal aliens. Get out of our country. Secure the borders.
— Publius1787 (@Publius1787179) February 27, 2024
. . . in push for *faithfully executing the immigration laws passed by Congress.*
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) February 27, 2024
Media drops all pretense of objectivity
— matthew8787 (@matthew8786) February 27, 2024
We've moved past pouncing and now we are INVOKING!!!!1!1!1!!!111!111!!!!!
— HabitualLinestepper (@HabitualLinest) February 27, 2024
And pointing. Republicans are pointing at the murder to convince Biden to secure the border, which we guess for NBC News is a "hard-line" immigration policy.
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