President Donald Trump signs the Laken Riley Act
in the East Room of the White House.
Thank you very much. Please, thank you very much.
Before we begin, I want to provide a brief report on the unprecedented success our country has been witnessing in recent weeks. Since even before the election, we’ve been making extraordinary progress. The American people gave us a clear mandate to save our country, and we won all seven swing states by a large margin—historic.
Very importantly, we won the popular vote by millions and millions of votes. Also, all 50 states, as you know, shifted toward the Republican Party, and that’s never happened before—all 50, every single one of them.
In our first week in office, we set records, taking over 350 executive actions. That’s not been done before, and it has reportedly been the single most effective opening week of any presidency in history. And we want to keep it that way—we want to keep it going. We want to keep it going.
We’ve broken from decades of failed Washington policies and restored common sense and sanity to our government. We’ve unleashed American energy, and we’ve already achieved record-low illegal immigration. As you see, there’s nobody trying to get in, and that’s what we’ve been waiting for—for a long time.
We’ve gotten woke ideologies out of our government and out of our military. The water has now begun flowing in California as we continue to increase the flow in the coming days. Nobody’s seen anything like that.
And I’ve also taken strong action to regain control of the Washington bureaucracy. Just for clarification purposes—because it was incorrectly reported yesterday—we have informed the federal workforce, which they’ve looked to do for many years, that if they’re working for the federal government, they must show up to the office on time and on schedule.
We don’t want them—we don’t want them—to work from home because, as everyone knows, most of the time, they’re not working. They’re not very productive. And it’s unfair to the millions of people in the United States who are, in fact, working hard—hard—from job sites and not from their home.
As federal employees, they must meet a high standard. They’re representing our government. They’re representing our country. If they don’t agree, by February 6th, to show up back to work in their office, they will be terminated. And we will therefore be downscaling our government, which is something that the last 10 presidents have tried very hard to do but failed.
Most of the people we’re talking about have not been going to their federal offices in many, many years—even from before COVID. But they, uh, have nevertheless been paid. Some have worked. Some haven’t worked. And most of the studies say that some have just gone through the motions.
We may ask these people to prove that they didn’t have another job during their so-called employment with the United States of America because, if they did, that would be unlawful. As you understand, a lot of people are getting paychecks, but they’re actually working other jobs. So they’ll have to prove that to us—that they weren’t.
In any event, we’re requiring them to show up to work—or be terminated.
We think a very substantial number of people will not show up to work, and therefore, our government will get smaller and more efficient—and that’s what we’ve been looking to do for many, many decades, frankly. Thank you.
In addition, there was a short-term pause or funding freeze on certain discretionary spending payments, such as government grants, only for us to quickly look at the scams, dishonesty, waste, and abuse that have taken place in our government for too long. As was explicitly stated, this in no way affected Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, or other entitlements that Americans depend on.
I’ve made it abundantly clear from the very first day that I ran for office—that was a long time ago now. That’s 2015, if you think about it. I announced in 2015, and we won in 2016. We did very well in 2020, but we did really well just recently.
And I’m restating right now to correct any confusion that the media has purposely—and somehow, for whatever reason—created: Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid have not been affected by any action we’ve taken in any way, shape, or form. We are merely looking at parts of the big bureaucracy where there has been tremendous waste, fraud, and abuse.
In that process, we identified and stopped $50 million being sent to Gaza to buy condoms for Hamas—50 million. And you know what’s happened to them? They’ve used them as a method of making bombs. How about that?
We stopped an attempt to make an illicit payment for illegal alien resettlement. We canceled $181 million in DEI training contracts—this was just for the training of people in DEI, which has been completely terminated.
And we paused $1.7 billion in unauthorized payments to foreign organizations, including stopping more than $40 million that was on its way out the door to the very corrupt World Health Organization, which has not done its job and not done it properly.
We also blocked $45 million for diversity scholarships in Burma—$45 million. That’s a lot of money for diversity scholarships in Burma. You can imagine where that money went.
These were the types of payments—among many others. I could stand here all day and tell you things that we found, and we have to find them quickly because we want the money to flow to proper places. But these were the payments and types of payments affected by the temporary freeze—and the American people strongly support these efforts. I talked about it during the campaign, and they voted for us in record numbers.
Every single day, we are now putting America First and fighting to get the most out of every single tax dollar for our great citizens.
We’ve gathered this afternoon to take another historic action.
In a few moments, however, the Laken Riley Act will become the very first bill that I proudly sign into law as the 47th President of the United States.
Laken was a brilliant and beautiful 22-year-old nursing student from Georgia—the best in her class. She was always the best. They would say, “Laken, how do you do this? What do you do?” They were always asking her questions. She was respected by everybody—even her teachers. They respected her so much.
From the time she was in first grade, Laken knew she wanted to spend her time caring for others. That’s what she did—for her friends and classmates.
She was a light of warmth and kindness in every single room. To her parents and family, she was everything in the world. They’ve had a miserable period of time.
Just after 9:00 a.m. on February 22nd, Laken went out for a jog on the campus of the University of Georgia—but she never returned. She never came back, did she?
Her parents are here, her sister, all of her relatives.
While on her run, Laken was attacked—viciously assaulted, beaten, brutalized, and murdered by an illegal alien gang member who was set loose into our country by the last administration.
We are deeply honored to be joined today by Laken’s parents, Allison and John, and her sister, Lauren.
Thank you very much. Thank you.
So sad. We were together right after that happened, and it’s a tremendous tribute to your daughter—what’s taking place today. That’s all I can say. But it’s so sad that we have to be doing this at all.
Thank you very much for being here.
To Laken’s family, we will keep Laken’s memory alive in our hearts forever—in everyone’s hearts.
With today’s action, her name will also live forever in the laws of our country. And this is a very important law.
This is something that has brought Democrats and Republicans together—that’s not easy to do. Laken did it. Laken did it.
America will never, ever forget Laken Hope Riley.
The vicious criminal who murdered precious Laken was an illegal alien member of the barbaric Venezuelan prison gang known as Tren de Aragua.
He trespassed across our southern border in 2022 and was apprehended by Border Patrol. But under the cruel policies of the last administration, instead of being deported—as he should have been—he was released into the United States, as were millions of other people. Many of them very dangerous people.
And you see what we’re doing—we’re getting them the hell out of here.
He was soon arrested again in New York City on charges of endangering a child. But because of New York City’s deadly sanctuary policies—like we have in California and many other places, which we’re ending, we’re going to end them—he was released again, to reoffend.
The Biden administration then provided this illegal alien criminal with a free, taxpayer-funded flight from New York to Georgia, where he was arrested yet again—constantly—this time for stealing from a Walmart, along with his gang-member brother, who was a bad one.
Only after being released a third time by U.S. law enforcement did this cold-blooded criminal go out that fateful morning, hunting for women on whom to prey.
That’s what he did—he hunted. He hunted. It was like a hunter.
Well, we’re going to show him who the hunter is.
This horrific atrocity should never have been allowed to happen.
And as President, I’m fighting every single day to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again.
We don’t want this to happen.
And under the law—thank you—under the law I’m signing today, the Department of Homeland Security will be required to detain all illegal aliens who have been arrested for theft, burglary, larceny, shoplifting, assaulting a police officer, murder, or any crime that results in death or serious injury.
In addition, for the first time ever, this act gives state governments the ability to sue the federal government for immediate injunctive relief if any future administration ever again refuses to enforce the immigration laws of the United States—like what happened for four long years. And that was happening for four long years—frightful years.
Amazing. You’d say, how? How can people do this? How can they allow this to happen? How can they allow criminals to pour into our country and then try to defend it? And they’re still trying to defend it. But they can’t.
That’s why I’m here instead of somebody else.
Actually, it’s the biggest reason. I believe it’s the single biggest reason.
Inflation was horrible. Many things were horrible during that administration. When you look at what took place in Afghanistan—the way they got out, not that they got out, but the way—it was horrible. So many things were horrible.
But to me, this was the worst of all.
It’s a landmark law that we’re signing today. It’s going to save countless innocent American lives.
I want to thank every House Republican, every Senate Republican, as well as the 12 Senate Democrats and the 48 House Democrats who voted to pass this vitally important bill. Many of them are with us today, and I really do appreciate it.
And I very much appreciate the bipartisan support.
Really, a big percentage of them came through. And plenty of them wanted to—they probably felt they couldn’t—but they really wanted to. They don’t understand that it would have made them a lot more popular. Would have made them a lot better with their people.
The ones that didn’t? They’re going to be—they’re going to be sorry. Because the people are not going to forget that they wouldn’t sign.
This is a perfect, incredible tribute to an unbelievable young lady.
We are joined today by many great supporters of our new, strong border policies. And they are indeed strong.
Including Vice President Vance—thank you, J.D.
Secretary Scott Bessant, who just got approved, by the way.
Where is Scott? He just got approved. Scott, I’m very impressed.
Got a lot of Democrat votes. He got a lot of Democrat votes. It’s great.
I don’t know, is that a good thing or a bad thing? Have to think about that.
Our Secretary of Homeland Security, who’s going to be fantastic. I know her so well. And I know it’s probably not complimentary because she is a woman, but she is tough.
Where is she? Where is Christy?
Great. Stand up, please. You have such an important job to do. Really great. Thank you very much.
And don’t let that look fool you. That look is—she’s tough. And she cannot stand what she’s having to sit here and even listen to today.
Another one who’s done a job like nobody I’ve seen in a long time—Tom Homan.
He’s my friend, but he is something special. He’s something special.
Great.
And Tom and Christy—the numbers are unbelievable. What’s happened, it’s like just shut down.
Nobody thought that was even possible. It’s just shut down.
They showed an area that, a year ago, had thousands and thousands of people rushing into our country. And today—there was nobody there. It was like a beautiful sight.
And also, Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso.
Great guy. Great guy. Thank you, John.
And I also want to thank the bill sponsors—Senator Katie Britt.
Katie, thank you.
And Congressman Mike Collins. And Mike, you were fantastic. From Georgia—he loves this state, and he took this very personally.
So, thank you very much, Mike.
As well as Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley—Chuck is here someplace.
Chuck, thank you very much. You look great.
And House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan—who’s a special guy.
Special man.
And House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green.
Thank you very much. Thank you, Mark.
And we have many other congressmen and senators, but I’m not going to introduce them—because this is about your daughter.
This is about something that’s so important.
And we’re going to just go along.
Thank you.
Also, we have to say—Burt Jones is in the room. And Burt is your Lieutenant Governor.
And he was on this like you wouldn’t believe.
Thank you very much.
Illegal crossings are down nearly 79%. Think of that—79%. Nobody thought that was possible. Everyone said it couldn’t be done, but we did it.
We are removing illegal alien gang members, human traffickers, drug dealers, and other criminals at a record pace. And we’re just getting started.
Under our administration, the days of lawlessness, the days of open borders, and the days of chaos are over. We are restoring order, we are restoring justice, and we are putting America first.
Today’s bill, the Laken Riley Act, is a critical step in that effort. It ensures that no other innocent American—no other beautiful young woman full of life and promise—will have to suffer the fate that Laken did.
We are going to enforce our laws. We are going to defend our borders. And we are going to protect our families.
To the families here today, I want you to know that your loved ones will never be forgotten. Their stories will live on. Their memories will guide us. And their legacies will drive us to build a safer, stronger, and more secure America.
This is just the beginning. We have a lot more work to do. But with the support of the American people, with the strength of the incredible men and women in law enforcement, and with the determination of this great nation—we will succeed.
We will make America safe again.
We will make America strong again.
And, together, we will Make America Great Again.
Thank you all very much. God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.
Thank you very much.
So, we have state and local officials, law enforcement organizations, and many others—most of them are in the room or represented here—and they are incredible people. I’ve never seen them come together like they have for this. I’ve done many of these kinds of events for different bills, different passages, related to Homeland Security, national security, taxes, and a variety of issues. But I’ve never seen such support as we have today, and as your great daughter has today. I’ve never seen anything like it. We have to thank your daughter for that because she’s going to save a lot of lives. She’s going to be responsible for saving a lot of lives.
I’d like to say to the Angel families, who have been with me since 2015 when I first got the crazy idea to run for president, that we can do better as a country. I want to thank so many of the people here, who are the Angel moms—though they are Angel families: fathers, sons, and daughters. They’ve suffered tremendously, like you have, for no reason whatsoever. I want to thank Alexis Nungari, the mother of 12-year-old Joselyn Nungari, who was murdered last summer by two illegal alien gang members released into the United States by Joe Biden’s open-border policies. Thank you very much, Alexis. I want to thank you very much. We had an amazing trip, and it was really special to meet you and your family.
It’s so bad, so sad that we have to be here, frankly. And Joselyn, as you know, is in our hearts, just as she was then. It was an amazing day, and we had a great day, but it was a day of celebration for somebody that, unfortunately, won’t be with us, but she is with us now. You know that.
Here also is Patty Morris, the mother of Rachel Moren, who was killed two years ago by an illegal alien who was allowed into our country by the last administration’s ridiculous, weak, open-border policies. Can you imagine? When I heard about open borders, I said, “That’s terrible. They’re going to release prisoners all over the world. They’re going to release prisoners into our country.” That’s exactly what happened. Patty is joined by Rachel’s brother, Michael, Rachel’s daughter Clementine, and sister-in-law Shannon. Thank you all for being here. We appreciate it very much.
Thank you very much. Also with us is the loving family of Kayla Hamilton, a 20-year-old girl murdered in July 2022 by an MS-13 illegal alien gang member—violent, vicious, and they knew it, but they didn’t do anything about it. Thank you to Kayla’s mother, Tammy, her grandmother Kathy, and her stepfather, Jeremiah. Thank you very much.
Finally, I want to thank others who have also suffered this horrible scourge of young people being killed. Thank you to Scott Root, the father of Sarah Root, killed at 21 years of age by an illegal alien who shouldn’t have been in our country and would have never been in our country if we were enforcing the law.
What a sad thing to each of these Angel families. We love you and stand in awe of your courage and your strength. It’s the toughest thing anybody has to go through. Many of the Angel families here today were betrayed by the last administration with its heartless, foolish, arrogant, and very dumb policies—policies that aren’t even believable when you talk about common sense. I say we’re the party of common sense, but the Democrats are, too. They have plenty of common sense. And that’s why so many are here today and why so many supported what we’re doing. The very government that was supposed to protect their daughters instead opened our borders and transported the world’s most dangerous criminals straight into their communities. They came from prisons, jails, insane asylums, and mental institutions from all over the world—not just South America. People think it’s just South America, but they come from all over the world. They come from every continent. They came here by plane, were loaded onto buses, and driven right up to our border. They drove right through the border, and nobody said a word to them. And in those buses, cars, and trucks were some of the meanest criminals anywhere in the world.
As of last September, 425,000 illegal alien criminals were roaming free in our country, including 13,099 convicted illegal alien murderers—almost 50% of whom had killed more than one person. They were roaming all over the country, in our farms, cities, and towns. Under the Trump administration, we moved with urgency and speed to get these vicious and violent criminals the hell out of our country and to restore law and order to our suburbs, cities, and towns. And we’re going to do it with Tom and with Christie, and with all the people who are working so hard on this.
This week, compared to a year ago, the number of illegal border crossers has already fallen by more than 100%. Because the election was coming, they started getting a little tougher on the border. They tried to follow our policies, and they did much better, but it still was horrible. The numbers were still bad.
The ICE arrests have risen 15 times in a short period. And over the past eight days, the heroes of ICE and Border Patrol—who we can never forget—have arrested thousands of illegal alien criminals, including hundreds of gang members, traffickers, child predators, terrorists, and murderers. For the first time in history, we are loading dangerous illegal aliens into military aircraft and flying them back to the places from which they came.
You probably read about Colombia two days ago. They said, “No, we’re not taking them.” I said, “We’re going to take them. You’re going to take them, and you’re going to like it too.” They talked about how they wouldn’t take people in shackles. But the people in shackles are murderers, drug lords, rapists—some of the worst people. They make our criminals look like very nice people.
Can you imagine you’re a pilot on the plane, and you have your co-pilot, and you’re sitting there with 150 people in shackles, and they like to murder people? That’s not a good flight. So actually, Colombia apologized to us within an hour.
Today, I’m also signing an executive order to instruct the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security to begin preparing the 30,000-person migrant facility at Guantanamo Bay. Most people don’t even know about it. We have 30,000 beds at Guantanamo to detain the worst criminal illegal aliens threatening the American people. Some of them are so bad we don’t even trust the countries to hold them because we don’t want them coming back. We’re going to send them out to Guantanamo. This will double our capacity immediately.
Today’s signings bring us one step closer to eradicating the scourge of migrant crime in our communities once and for all. We need Congress to provide full funding for the complete restoration of our sovereign borders and the financial support to remove record numbers of illegal aliens—criminals at levels nobody has ever seen before.
Now, before I sign the Laken Riley Act into law, I’d like to ask Laken’s incredible mother, Allison, to come up and say a few words. I got to know her during a very sad time, but this is an amazing tribute to an amazing young person. If you could come up, Allison, that would be great. Thank you very much.
We would like to thank Senator Katie Britt for her diligent bipartisan work to get this bill through the Senate. We’d also like to thank Congressman Mike Collins for his unwavering passion and for leading on the Laken Riley Act from the start. Our family will forever be grateful for the prayers of the people across our nation and for helping to get this legislation into law.
We also want to thank President Trump for the promises he made to us. He said he would secure our borders and that he would never forget about Laken—and he hasn’t. He’s a man of his word, and we trust that he will fight for the American people.
Most importantly, I want to thank our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, because without His sacrifices, Laken’s story would have ended on that horrific day that she was taken from us. But because of Him, we can continue living, knowing that we will see Laken again. There’s no amount of change that will ever bring back our precious Laken. Our hope moving forward is that her life saves lives.
We’re so thankful that her passion for helping others and her legacy for doing good in the name of Jesus Christ will carry on.
Thank you.
We’re going to sign this in honor of Laken Riley. Come on up here, some of the people that we love who have been so instrumental.
Okay, thank you. Governor, can you take a quick question?
I don’t think this is an appropriate time, really. I respect that, but I don’t think it’s appropriate. I can just tell you, the government is doing very well, and we’re cutting way back, but this is not the appropriate time. Thank you.
Washington, D.C. January 29, 2029
—In a move signaling a firm stance on immigration enforcement, President Donald J. Trump signed the Laken Riley Act into law on January 29, 2025. The legislation mandates the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain non-citizens charged with or convicted of theft-related crimes, assaulting a police officer, or offenses resulting in death or serious bodily injury, such as drunk driving. It also grants states the authority to sue DHS for perceived lapses in immigration enforcement.
The Act, named in memory of Laken Riley, a Georgia resident murdered in February 2024 by an illegal immigrant with a criminal record, underscores growing concerns over border security and public safety. The bill gained bipartisan support, passing the House with a 263–156 vote on January 22, 2025, after the Senate’s approval.
A Tragic Catalyst for Reform
The legislation was introduced following the killing of Riley on the University of Georgia campus in Athens. Her accused murderer, José Antonio Ibarra, a Venezuelan national who illegally entered the U.S. in September 2022 near El Paso, Texas, had prior run-ins with law enforcement. Ibarra had been charged in New York City with endangering a child and a motor vehicle license violation and later arrested for theft in Athens, Georgia. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had issued a detainer for Ibarra after his New York arrest, but local authorities released him before federal officials could take him into custody.
The murder prompted a national outcry, with lawmakers pointing to the case as emblematic of systemic immigration enforcement failures. Proponents of the Act argue it addresses gaps in federal enforcement, ensuring that individuals with criminal histories are detained rather than released.
Political and Public Reactions
The Act’s passage has drawn sharp reactions across the political spectrum. Supporters hail it as a necessary step in holding the federal government accountable for immigration policies that impact public safety. “This law ensures that dangerous individuals are no longer allowed to slip through the cracks of our broken system,” President Trump stated at the signing ceremony.
Critics, however, argue that the Act could lead to overreach and potential civil rights concerns. Opponents contend that it places undue burdens on law enforcement and risks straining DHS resources. Some Democratic lawmakers warn that the measure may face legal challenges over states’ ability to sue the federal government.
Despite the debate, the Laken Riley Act represents a significant legislative shift, reinforcing the Trump administration’s commitment to stricter immigration controls. As the law takes effect, its impact on crime rates, border security, and federal-state relations will be closely monitored.
Sources: Video WH.gov , https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/5 Wikipedia