‘Racist’ Florida congressman draws outrage over Islamophobic comment

Controversial Republican Congressman Randy Fine is facing mounting calls to resign after making heavily Islamophobic comments that have triggered widespread condemnation from politicians and civil rights groups.

“If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one,” Fine wrote on X on Monday, shortly before the holy month of Ramadan and directed at Muslims worldwide.

The Florida lawmaker said his comments were in response to remarks made by Nerdeen Kiswani, founder of the New York City-based Palestinian network Within Our Lifetime.

Last week, Kiswani had echoed people in New York complaining about dog waste in public, saying the complaints mirrored Muslims’ wariness about the contribution of untreated canine waste to unsanitary conditions in the urban atmosphere.

Social media exchange sparks outrage

Fine’s response drew sharp criticism across party lines and from advocacy groups.

California Governor Gavin Newsom called on Fine to step down, writing on X, “Resign now, you racist slob.”

Cameron Kasky, a Jewish activist, responded, “Imagine if an American politician said this about Jews.”

Representative Brendan Boyle, a Pennsylvania Democrat, said, “Randy Fine is an ugly bigot. He should not be in Congress.”

Representative Yassamin Ansari, an Arizona Democrat, stated: “If anyone said something this vile in any workplace, they’d be fired. Randy Fine has repeatedly dehumanized Muslims without consequence. It’s unacceptable and should not be normalized by Congress. Speaker Johnson should reprimand him immediately. And if Fine cannot meet the most basic standard of human dignity, he should resign.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations also issued a statement demanding that congressional leaders call for Fine’s resignation.

The group described his rhetoric, including the recent post and previous remarks, as racist and likened him to a “modern Klansman and Nazi,” saying his comments reflected a broader pattern of targeting Muslims and Palestinians.

History of inflammatory statements

Fine had previously drawn condemnation for remarks related to Gaza and Muslims.

In 2021, when a user on X posted an image of a dead Palestinian child pulled from rubble and asked how he sleeps at night, Fine replied: “Quite well, actually! Thanks for the pic!”

He has also said, “The Palestinian cause is an evil one.… We nuked the Japanese twice [in World War II],” suggesting the US could repeat the atrocity in the case of Gaza.

US congressman: Gaza needs to be 'nuked' like Hiroshima

Florida’s Republican Congressman Randy Fine has called for the nuclear annihilHiroshimaation of Gaza.

During a House committee hearing last year, Fine stated, “I don’t know how you make peace with those [Muslims] who seek your destruction, I think you destroy them first.”

Fine has previously called for a “Muslim travel ban,” “radical deportations of all mainstream Muslim legal and illegal immigrants,” and “citizenship revocations wherever possible,” alleging that “mainstream Muslims have declared war on us” and that they should be “kicked the hell out of America.”

He has also directed remarks at Muslim members of Congress Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, writing, “The Hebrew Hammer is coming” with “#BombsAway.”

Fine also sparked controversy after celebrating the Israeli regime’s killing of 26-year-old Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi in the occupied West Bank, referring to her as a “Muslim terrorist.”

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