Democratic Lawmaker Regrets Voting For Laken Riley Act, Says Trump Admin Terrorizing Legal Migrants

Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-Conn., said connected Thursday that she regretted voting for nan Laken Riley Act earlier this year.

The congresswoman made nan connection during a CNN municipality hall, telling anchor Kaitlan Collins that though she erstwhile supported nan bill, she came to regret it aft seeing immigrants being demonized by nan Trump administration.

"As I've thought astir it complete nan past mates of months, I astir apt would person voted differently. It's a ballot that I regret," Hayes said. 

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Rep. Jahana Hayes, D-Conn. said during a CNN municipality hallway connected Thursday that she regrets voting for nan Laken Riley Act. (Screenshot/CNN)

President Donald Trump signed nan Laken Riley Act into rule successful January 2025. The caller rule requires national migration authorities to detain forbidden immigrants charged aliases recovered blameworthy of theft-related crimes, arsenic good arsenic those accused of assaulting a constabulary officer. It besides would let states to writer nan Department of Homeland Security for harm caused to their citizens because of forbidden immigration.

The rule was named for Laken Riley, a nursing student who was killed by an forbidden migrant while jogging connected nan University of Georgia's campus. 

The law’s wide critics opportunity it undermines forbidden immigrants’ "access to basal owed process." The American Immigration Council put out a statement successful January, which read, "Under this law, they would beryllium placed successful indefinite detention if accused—not convicted—of low-level crimes for illustration shoplifting. That could see children who are mistakenly arrested and accused of crimes they did not commit."

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President Donald Trump signs nan Laken Riley Act successful nan East Room of nan White House, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025, successful Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Collins asked Hayes astir her support for nan rule arsenic good arsenic nan law’s alleged threat to owed process. The lawmaker responded that she’s concerned astir ineligible migrants who are suffering because of it, and noted she only voted for it because of its protection for constabulary officers.

"I understand really immigrants crossed this country, who are present legally and person followed nan law, are being terrorized correct now because they are unsure of what happens next," she said. "I voted for that portion of authorities because of a very circumstantial provision, and it was if it caused wounded aliases decease to a constabulary officer, which was 1 mini portion of it."

Hayes mentioned Collins’ constituent astir owed process concerns, saying they'd caused her to regret supporting it alongside nan 47 different Democratic representatives who voted for it successful Congress. 

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She added that she was much comfortable pinch nan rule successful nan beginning, arsenic she thought nan Trump management would cooperate pinch Democratic lawmakers connected migration reform. However, she said she doubts that now.

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"But coming into this Congress, I trusted that this administration… if they wanted to person separator security, they wanted to activity pinch Democrats, that we could really move forward," she stated. "I’m not really judge of that, because I’ve seen nan rhetoric that has travel retired and nan attacks that person been targeted towards immigrants. So, I’m very cautious and observant erstwhile I’m negotiating my votes moving forward."