CNN refused to air a conservative group’s State of the Union ad that blamed President Joe Biden for the murder of 22-year-old Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, who was killed by an illegal immigrant.
Building America’s Future said Friday that major media networks, including Fox News, MSNBC, and Newsmax, all accepted the ad. CNN ultimately rejected it, however.
“CNN and Joe Biden are in lockstep once again: they won’t even #sayhername,” Building America’s Future advisor Phil Cox said in a statement provided to National Review.
“It is shameful that CNN is censoring the truth and trying to protect President Biden by refusing to air this ad,” Cox added. “The American people understand that Biden’s open borders agenda is responsible for the death of Laken Riley. Building America’s Future won’t be deterred when it comes to the important work of informing the public on how we are all less safe in Joe Biden’s America.”
The news was first shared by Fox News commentator Guy Benson on X: “I am told that CNN is refusing to air this. They ran out the clock on a pre-SOTU ad buy — then rejected it, calling several of its claims unsubstantiated. Fox and MSNBC aired it.”
In response to National Review’s request for comment, a CNN spokesperson confirmed that the ad failed to meet the network’s commercial clearance guidelines and policies because its claims were unsubstantiated.
The 60-second clip from Building America’s Future was part of a $700,000 television ad buy that aired nationally and in key battleground states, including Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, during Biden’s State of the Union address Thursday night.
The ad buy included a separate ad, which highlighted the dangers of a $340 billion health-care program for illegal immigrants. However, the conservative nonprofit did not publicly note whether the second ad was included in the offer to CNN.
Biden’s refusal to deport known illegal immigrant criminals cost Laken Riley her life. How many more killers has Biden set free? #SAYHERNAME pic.twitter.com/DKIWvTc9oU
— Building America’s Future (@bldgUSAfuture) March 7, 2024
In the first ad, titled “Run,” a narrator tells audiences Riley “should have been able to go on a run in broad daylight without being murdered by an illegal immigrant.”
“But Joe Biden promised not to deport illegal immigrants,” the voiceover adds, quoting the president’s own words. “Biden vowed not to detain illegal immigrants who cross the border.”
“So when Jose Ibarra crossed into America illegally, he was not deported, he was not put in jail,” the narrator continues. “Biden also supported sanctuary cities.”
The video then cuts to Biden saying that local police should not turn over illegal immigrants to federal authorities.
“So when Jose Ibarra was arrested in New York City for endangering a child, he was freed a second time. Ibarra went to Georgia, where he beat Laken Riley to death. How many more killers has Biden set free?” the ad asks.
Jose Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old Venezuelan national, killed Riley in Georgia on February 22, prompting Republican outrage over Biden’s refusal to shut down the border.
During the State of the Union, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R., Ga.) called out Biden for not saying Riley’s name when pinning blame on Republicans for the bipartisan border-security deal that failed in the Senate last month. Only when confronted by Greene did Biden say her name, although he appeared to say “Lincoln Riley.”
“An innocent young woman who was killed by an illegal,” Biden said. “But how many . . . thousands of people are being killed by illegals? To her parents, I say my heart goes out to you, having lost children myself. I understand.”
Riley’s parents were invited as guests to the State of the Union speech by Representative Mike Collins (R., Ga.), who said they declined as they are grieving the loss of their daughter. “Therefore, the seat reserved for my guest will remain vacant to honor Laken and all American victims of illegal alien crime,” Collins said.
Riley’s name was not included in the White House’s official State of the Union transcript.
With Biden’s lack of action on the border crisis, immigration remains a top concern for Republican voters. Just over four-fifths of likely GOP primary voters, according to a recent survey from the Tyson Group, said stopping illegal immigration is an important issue this election cycle. Additionally, three-fourths of respondents indicated they would be less likely to vote for an elected official who has supported weak immigration legislation.
Late last month, Gallup similarly found that a record-high 55 percent of Americans believe illegal immigration is a critical threat to U.S. vital interests. Of the total respondents, 90 percent of Republicans said illegal immigration is a critical threat.