Ossoff needs to take a harder line on Venezuela, but he hasn’t so far
In Georgia, we know that good people pay the price for domestic and foreign policy failures.
Our state tragically lived that reality in Athens on Feb. 22, 2024, when 22‑year‑old nursing student Laken Riley was brutally murdered while jogging near the University of Georgia.
Her killer is a Venezuelan national who entered the United States illegally while Joe Biden was president. He has since been convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
I thought of Riley when I heard the news of President Donald Trump’s historic and successful operation to arrest Venezuelan narco-terrorist dictator Nicolás Maduro. And while I saw many Georgians celebrate Maduro’s arrest on Jan. 3, U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff was conspicuously silent.
Then, he voted to condemn Trump’s action and block the United States from holding dictators like Maduro accountable after they threaten American’s safety and flood our streets with fentanyl. And yet he has still refused to acknowledge Maduro’s arrest or his regime’s role in the murder of Riley.
This is the link between Maduro and Laken Riley’s killer
Praising the fact that an indicted drug trafficker and dictator is being brought to justice would seem like a no-brainer to most.
But not to Ossoff. His silence and vote opposing Trump’s actions are all the more infuriating given that Maduro’s criminal regime played a central role in the tragic murder of Riley right here in Georgia.
Maduro’s narco-terrorism, deep government corruption, organized crime and socialism has led to one of the largest humanitarian crises in history. Over 8 million Venezuelans fled for their lives while Maduro pushed narcotics through our southern border. Then, he emptied Venezuelan prisons and sent criminals to our southern border.
Maduro’s dictatorship led Riley’s killer to take advantage of Biden and Ossoff’s “open borders” policies. He was then released into the interior of the country by the Biden administration’s abuse of asylum, which Ossoff supported. Ultimately, he ended up in Georgia, where he murdered Riley.
Riley’s life was the cost of Ossoff’s complicity with Biden’s weak foreign policy and open borders. It’s sadly not the only example of his failed leadership.
After Riley’s murder, Ossoff had the opportunity to support legislation to ensure monsters like her killer were held accountable. Ossoff refused for almost a year and even voted against a version of the bill before he made a transparent 2026 election-cycle reversal and voted for the Laken Riley Act as his campaign loomed. Ossoff also voted repeatedly against funding to secure the border.
Senator criticizes Trump and seems to appease Democratic extremes
And these past weeks, while many senators lauded the Trump administration’s decisive action against Maduro, Ossoff chose to stay silent and vote against future operations like it. He’s spent the past year having plenty to say. He criticized Trump’s efforts to secure our border and prevent criminals like Riley’s murderer from hurting more innocent Georgians.
Ossoff said he would work every day to make impeaching Trump a reality. And now liberal groups Ossoff will rely on for reelection are joining his call.
Ossoff’s weak foreign policy has also emboldened other hostile foreign dictators like Iran and China. He’s even refused to denounce the Democrat Party’s embrace of socialists like New York City’s new mayor.
Time and time again, Ossoff prioritizes appeasing the pro-Marxist, radical Democrat base he needs to win an election over keeping Georgians safe.
Our state deserves better. Georgia deserves a senator who will speak clearly against dangerous thugs like Maduro, open borders and the violence that costs lives like Riley’s here at home.
Ossoff’s silence on Venezuela makes it clear he doesn’t deserve to be sent back to the Senate again.
Georgia state Sen. Jason Anavitarte, R-Dallas, represents Paulding and Polk counties in Senate District 31 and serves as Senate Majority Leader. He is a former member of the Paulding County School Board and former councilman for the city of Doraville.
