If there was anything that people will remember about Joe Biden's blatantly partisan campaign speech that he delivered during the State of the Union, it will be the moment he completely botched the name of Laken Riley, the 22-year-old nursing student from Georgia who was killed by an illegal immigrant who came into the United States under Joe Biden's open borders policies.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) handed out pins that read "Say Her Name: Laken Riley" in the chamber, and went on to provoke Biden by shouting "Say her name!" when Biden pivoted in his speech on the border and struggled to get his footing.
🔈🔈🔈 JUST NOW: Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, outfitted in red MAGA/Trump gear, gives President Biden a pin and tells him, “Laken Riley. Say her name, Mr. President.”@mtgreenee @RepMTG pic.twitter.com/eBoHteXClA
— Anna Giaritelli (@Anna_Giaritelli) March 8, 2024
Biden mumbled, "I be a winner, not really..." and then lost his place. He reached for a picture of Laken Riley, which had clearly been placed on his podium as an assistive device for just that purpose. This is the worst we've ever seen him. #SOTU2024 https://t.co/VYf7USx41Y
— Paula Bolyard (@pbolyard) March 8, 2024
“Lincoln — Lincoln Riley,” Biden said. “An innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal.”
Biden then sought to minimize her murder by saying, “That’s right, but how many of the thousands of people are being killed by legals?"
Adding insult to injury, he had to once again make it about himself.
“To her parents, I say my heart goes out to you, having lost children myself," he continued. "I understand, but look, if we change the dynamic at the border — people pay, people people [sic] pay these smugglers $8,000 bucks to get across the border because they know if they get by, if they get by and let into the country it’s six to eight years before they have a hearing and it’s worth taking the chance.”
Biden refers to Laken Riley — a 22-year-old Georgia student murdered by an illegal alien his administration let in — as "Lincoln." pic.twitter.com/oVokg8n2IX
— RNC Research (@RNCResearch) March 8, 2024
PJ Media received Biden's prepared remarks, which did not include any reference to Laken Riley, so it was an unscripted moment that perhaps he thought was going to work for him, and yet he managed to make the situation worse.
"Its actually far worse to disrespect her by getting her name wrong than simply not saying anything at all," noted National Review contributor Pradheep J. Shanker.
Monica Crowley agreed, "Calling Laken Riley 'Lincoln' Riley was more insulting than if he didn’t mention her at all. What a disgrace."
"Biden just called Laken Riley Lincoln Riley and compares her murder to his adult son dying of natural causes. Unclear what he's trying to say here," observed Mollie Hemingway of The Federalist.
"Joe Biden just confused Laken Riley, a college student killed by an illegal immigrant, with USC football coach Lincoln Riley," Outkick founder Clay Travis said in a post on X/Twitter. "This just happened. The man’s brain is mush. Incredibly disrespectful."
"Lincoln Riley is a male college football coach, @JoeBiden," Sean Davis of The Federalist said on X. "Laken Riley is the young woman who was murdered by one of the illegals you invited across our border."
Join the conversation as a VIP Member