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By Khaleda Rahman
National Correspondent
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California Governor Gavin Newsom has called on Representative Randy Fine of Florida to resign over comments the Republican made about Muslims.
"If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one," Fine wrote on X on Sunday.
Newsom, a Democrat, responded, "Resign now, you racist slob."
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Newsweek has contacted Fine and Newsom for further comment via emails sent outside regular business hours.
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Why It Matters
Fine, who is Jewish, has previously faced condemnation and calls to resign from Democrats, civil rights groups and Jewish organizations over his rhetoric toward Muslims and Palestinians. He has repeatedly described Muslims as violent and called for their deportation from the United States. He has also called Muslim elected officials terrorists and said mainstream Muslims should "be destroyed."
The Republican has stood by his comments, saying he is "not afraid" of being labeled Islamophobic. Fine is also a member of a new congressional group targeting what it describes as the growing threat of Sharia, or Islamic religious law, in the United States. According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations, anti-Muslim discrimination has risen sharply in recent years.
What To Know
Fine provided context for his comments on X, indicating that he was responding to a post from "the leader of one of the key mainstream Muslim groups that supported" New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
The follow-up message included a screenshot of a post by Nerdeen Kiswani, a Palestinian activist and Muslim who founded Within Our Lifetime, a pro-Palestinian organization.
Kiswani wrote on Thursday: "Finally, NYC is coming to Islam. Dogs definitely have a place in society, just not as indoor pets. Like we've said all along, they are unclean."
On Friday, she said her earlier remarks were "obviously a joke," adding, "I don't care if you have a dog, I do care if your dog is s******* everywhere and you're not cleaning it."
In another post, Kiswani said those criticizing her initial comments were "unaware of the current nyc discourse where we're collectively (jokingly) hating on dogs given all the visible dog s*** in the unmelted snow lmao."
Kiswani posted her initial message on the same day that Gothamist published a column calling for stricter enforcement of rules requiring pets to be in a bag or carrier, after a dog fell onto subway tracks and died earlier this month.
What People Are Saying
Activist Nerdeen Kiswani responded to Representative Randy Fine's post on Sunday, writing on X: "Randy fine posted this genocidal statement about me. Thing is, no one is forcing you to choose. He's just like the millions of other racists hounding me this past week, looking for a reason to be Islamophobic. Just replace Muslims with any other religion and ask if this is ok."
Cameron Kasky, a Jewish activist who recently ended his campaign to become the Democratic nominee in New York's 12th Congressional District, wrote on X in response to Fine's post: "Imagine if an American politician said this about Jews."
Representative Brendan Boyle, a Pennsylvania Democrat, wrote on X: "Randy Fine is an ugly bigot. He should not be in Congress."
Representative Yassamin Ansari, an Arizona Democrat, wrote on X on Monday: "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. @SpeakerJohnson should reprimand him immediately. And if Fine cannot meet the most basic standard of human dignity, he should resign."
Conservative attorney Marina Medvin wrote on X: "No one is forcing Muslims to keep pet dogs in NYC but this Palestinian wants to force Americans to give up their pets for her religious beliefs even when she is not directly impacted. The thought process is what matters most in this story. Pay attention to the intentions."
Fine wrote on X in December: "Diversity is not our strength. Diversity has become suicidal. It is time for a Muslim travel ban, radical deportations of all mainstream Muslim legal and illegal immigrants, and citizenship revocations wherever possible. Mainstream Muslims have declared war on us. The least we can do is kick them the hell out of America."
What Happens Next
Lawmakers, among others, have called for Fine to face censure or resign over the comments.
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