President Biden apologized Saturday for using the word “illegal” during his State of the Union address to describe the Venezuelan migrant accused of killing Georgia nursing student Laken Riley.
“An undocumented person. I shouldn’t have used illegal, it’s undocumented,” Biden told MSNBC’s Jonathan Capehart in an excerpt from an interview airing Saturday.
“And look, when I spoke about the difference between Trump and me, one of the things I talked about in the border was his, the way he talks about vermin, the way he talks about these people polluting the blood. I talked about what I’m not going to do. What I won’t do.
“I’m not going to treat any, any, any of these people with disrespect. Look, they built the country. The reason our economy is growing. We have to control the border and more orderly flow, but I don’t share his view at all,” continued Biden, who referred to Riley as “Lincoln Riley” during the same speech.
“So, you regret using that word?” Capehart asked.
“Yes,” Biden responded.
Riley, a 22-year-old student at Augusta University, was killed on Feb. 22 during her morning jog on the nearby University of Georgia campus.
Jose Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old Venezuelan citizen who entered the United States illegally in 2022, is being held without bond on charges of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, kidnapping and other counts.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
