President-elect Donald Trump will have a lot of business to take care of on Inauguration Day, and if Republicans get their way in Congress, an immigration bill will be on his desk waiting for his signature.
The Laken-Riley Act, named after the 22-year-old nursing student from Georgia who was brutally murdered by a Venezuelan illegal last year, is expected to be the first law passed by the 119th Congress. The bill – which was first passed in 2024 with bipartisan support in the House but was blocked by the Democratic-controlled Senate – will go to the fresh Congress for a vote on Tuesday.
Laken Riley’s Family and Friends Issue Heartbreaking Statements of Impact; Judge sentences Jose Ibarra
UNREAL: ABC News tries to blame Donald Trump for Laken Riley’s murder
The bill Goals to provide Americans with a little protection by incarcerating illegals who commit non-violent crimes.
This bill requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain certain non-U.S. citizens (Aliens (under federal law) who have been arrested for burglary, larceny, larceny, or shoplifting. The bill also authorizes states to sue the federal government over decisions or alleged failures related to immigration enforcement.
This bill would require DHS to detain an individual who: (1) is unlawfully present in the United States or did not have the required documentation when applying for admission; and (2) has been charged with, arrested, or convicted of, or admits to having committed, acts that constitute the imperative elements of burglary, larceny, larceny, or shoplifting.
If this bill, which is just a drop in the ocean of illegal immigration reform needed in the United States, had been enacted this time last year, Laken Riley would still be alive. The man had previously been convicted of her murder arrested for child endangerment and shoplifting and therefore would have been in custody and not free to prey on teenage women like Laken Riley.
Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA), the bill’s original sponsor, is confident it will pass the House again with bipartisan support.
“I would like that [the Laken Riley Act] I’ll be sitting right there on President Trump’s desk when he sits down on the 20th.
– Georgia @RepMikeCollins on a bill that will require ICE to detain illegal immigrants who commit theft crimes@SharlaMcBride @Marc_Lotter pic.twitter.com/FBoZ8LpTyc
— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) January 7, 2025
REMINDER: President Biden never apologized to Laken’s family for allowing her killer into our country, but he did apologize for calling this monster “illegal.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) confirmed on Tuesday
The House of Representatives will vote today on the Laken-Riley Act to ensure that criminals like Laken’s murderer are arrested and deported before they can commit such evil acts.
REMINDER: President Biden never apologized to Laken’s family for allowing her killer into our country, but he did apologize… pic.twitter.com/ZOFox00aWD
– Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) January 7, 2025
Once the bill passes the House of Representatives, it goes to the Senate for a vote. The Senate led by Chuck Schumer blocked The bill will not be voted on in March 2024, but the fresh Senate Majority Leader, Senator John Thune (R-SD), will seek to hold a vote this Friday.
The legislation received a boost when Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) became the first Democrat to become a co-sponsor of the bill.
BREAKING: Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) supports the Laken Riley Act in the Senate.
Fetterman is the first Senate Democrat to sponsor it.
This bill will ensure the detention and deportation of criminal aliens before they can commit heinous crimes like what happened to Laken Riley.… pic.twitter.com/SBqGifP5VB
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 7, 2025
The heat is now on other Democrats in the Senate. There are some Reports that the bill doesn’t have enough Democratic support to overcome a 60-vote filibuster, but Fetterman’s support definitely shakes things up. Two former House members who now serve in the Senate, Democrats Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), previously voted for the bill.
Once the Laken-Riley bill makes its way to the Senate, all eyes will be on Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA), who is up for re-election in 2026 and represents the state where the heinous crime was committed. Google searches turned up no instances of Ossoff publicly commenting on Laken Riley’s murder, a good indication that he doesn’t support the bill.
As a reminder, President-elect Donald Trump won Georgia by over two percentage points.
