A series of Democratic members of Congress took issue with Biden's reference to "illegals" during last night’s State of the Union (SOTU) address.
During Biden's speech, Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene shouted out "Say her name!" in reference to 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley, who was allegedly murdered by an illegal Venezuela immigrant late last month.
"Lincoln Riley," Biden said, mispronouncing her name, "An innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal."
The president appeared to downplay Riley's death by asking how many American citizens had been killed by legal immigrants.
Progressive Democrats criticized Biden's reference to illegal migrants as "illegal" following the SOTU.
"Let me be clear: No human being is illegal," wrote Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar.
Illinois Rep. Chuy Garcia similarly took issue with the term.
"As a proud immigrant, I'm extremely disappointed to hear President Biden use the word 'illegal,'" he wrote.
Texas Rep. Joaquin Castro praised much of the content of Biden's speech, though also criticized his use of the term "illegal."
"There was a lot of good in President Biden's speech tonight, but his rhetoric about immigrants was incendiary and wrong," Castro wrote.
"The rhetoric President Biden used tonight was dangerously close to language from Donald Trump that puts a target on the backs of Latinos everywhere," he continued in another post. "Democrats shouldn’t be taking our cues from MAGA extremism."
Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal, who also serves as chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said she wished Biden had not engaged with Greene using the term "illegal" in a statement to The Associated Press.
Biden went on to express sympathy for Riley's parents.
"To her parents, I say, my heart goes out to you having lost children myself. I understand," he said, though transitioned to promoting amnesty for millions of illegal immigrants across the country.
Biden also encouraged Republicans in Congress to pass the heavily disputed border bill in order to ensure safety at the nation's southern border.
Efforts to reclassify "illegal" immigrants as "newcomers" or "undocumented" have emerged in recent years in an effort to encourage "inclusive language," per the Department of Homeland Security.
“This change is designed to encourage more inclusive language in the agency’s outreach efforts, internal documents and in overall communication with stakeholders, partners, and the general public,” the department wrote in their 2021 memo. "The guidance does not affect legal, policy or other operational documents, including forms, where using terms (such as applicant, petitioner, etc.) as defined by the Immigration and Nationality Act would be the most appropriate."
