The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) took a swipe at Representative Darren Soto (D-FL) for voting against the Laken Riley Act.
This week, President Donald Trump honored Angel Families who lost a loved one to illegal alien crime. The president also honored the family of Laken Riley, a Georgia medical student who was murdered by a suspected member of the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua.
"We're willing to tell the story that the news doesn't want to hear, the Democrats don't want to hear," the Rapid Response 47 X account posted. "We want to stop murders and criminals from coming into our country... We appreciate the bravery of everybody in this room."
The Laken Riley Act, named after Riley, immediately deports illegal immigrants who have been arrested for shoplifting, assaulting police officers, and crimes resulting in death or serious bodily injury. It also grants states the ability to sue the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for injunctive relief if "immigration actions such as parole, violation of detention requirements, or other policy failures harm that state or its citizens."
Rep. Soto was one of seven Florida Democrats who voted against the bill, while Representative Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) was the sole Democrat to vote in favor of it.
In response to Rep. Soto's vote, NRCC spokeswoman Maureen O'Toole commented, "When given the chance to keep Floridians safe, out-of-touch Democrat Darren Soto instead sided with the radical left and voted to let more innocent Americans like Laken Riley be murdered in cold blood." "Voters will never forget this betrayal," she concluded.
The remarks against Rep. Soto are among the most recent jabs the NRCC has directed at Florida Democrats, with a Valentine's Day message leveled at Rep. Moskowitz saying, "Unfortunately for Florida, Jared Moskowitz is more interested in his sneakers than in making their lives better. This November, they'll vote him out, because they know they don't have to settle."
The congressional seats of Soto and Moskowitz are considered vulnerable in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections.
