The tragic murder of Laken Riley, a promising nursing student from Athens, Georgia, has become a flashpoint for the failures of border policy under the Biden-Harris administration. The brutal crime, committed by Jose Ibarra—a Venezuelan illegal immigrant with alleged ties to the violent Tren de Aragua gang—has drawn national outrage. But the media’s shameless attempts to deflect accountability from those in power are as revealing as they are appalling.
Let’s start with the facts: Jose Ibarra entered the United States illegally during a period of unprecedented border chaos, a crisis entirely manufactured by the Biden administration’s abandonment of effective Trump-era policies. According to reports, Ibarra arrived in Athens on a taxpayer-funded flight facilitated by a federal program that uses public money to distribute migrants across the country. Less than six months later, he savagely murdered Laken Riley as she went for a jog.
Minutes after the illegal scum who killed Laken Riley was sentenced, Fake News hack @IkeEjiochi was on ABC blaming President Trump.
This isn’t a “political lightning rod” — it’s a TRAGEDY that ONLY happened because Biden-Harris LET this animal roam our country. pic.twitter.com/y0Tp3qpZqg
— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) November 20, 2024
This wasn’t just a tragedy—it was a preventable one. And yet, instead of reckoning with the policies that allowed a known gang affiliate to roam freely within the U.S., the media is busy running interference.
ABC News’s coverage of this case reached new heights of irresponsibility when correspondent Ike Ejiochi suggested that Donald Trump—who hasn’t been in office for nearly three years—bears some blame for Ibarra’s presence in the country. The absurd claim hinges on a convoluted narrative about Trump allegedly derailing a bipartisan immigration bill years ago. It’s the kind of mental gymnastics only a partisan media outlet could perform with a straight face.
Here’s the reality: under Trump, border crossings plummeted, violent criminals were deported en masse, and the border wall construction was well underway. Biden’s administration, on the other hand, dismantled those policies, opened the floodgates, and facilitated flights like the one that brought Ibarra to Georgia. Trying to lay this tragedy at Trump’s feet isn’t just dishonest—it’s desperate.
JUSTICE FOR LAKEN RILEY! The Illegal who killed our beloved Laken Riley was just found GUILTY on all counts for his horrific crimes. Although the pain and heartbreak will last forever, hopefully this can help bring some peace and closure to her wonderful family who fought for…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 20, 2024
The murder of Laken Riley is a stark reminder of the human cost of open-border policies. Every unsecured border crossing, every taxpayer-funded migrant flight, and every failure to vet incoming individuals is a potential tragedy waiting to happen. This isn’t abstract; it’s real. The pain felt by Laken’s family is real. The empty chair at Thanksgiving is real. And it’s a direct result of policy decisions made by Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Donald Trump, now returning to the White House with a clear mandate to restore law and order, didn’t mince words in his statement. His message was simple: secure the border, deport violent criminals, and prevent more families from enduring what the Riley family has suffered. Unlike the media spin machine, Trump’s focus is on solutions, not excuses.
The media’s attempt to shield Biden and Harris from accountability is not just a disservice to the truth—it’s an insult to Laken Riley’s memory. Jose Ibarra should never have been in the United States. That he was here, free to commit such an atrocity, is a failure of leadership at the highest levels.
