'Malignant clown': Republican lawmaker faces backlash after saying Muslims don't belong in US
Lawmaker Andy Ogles claims US Muslims should move to Muslim countries if they want to practice their faith.
Republican lawmaker Andy Ogles has drawn sharp criticism after writing an anti-Muslim and hateful post on social media, prompting a backlash from several Democratic lawmakers and at least one fellow Republican.
"Muslims don't belong in American society," Ogles said on X. "Pluralism is a lie."
He later doubled down on it, saying in a later post that US Muslims should move to Muslim countries.
"There are 57 Islamic countries in the world (not counting the UK)," he said.
Backlash
Ogles faced massive backlash from Democratic lawmakers over his comments, including House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Representative Eric Swalwell and others.
Jeffries sharply criticised the remark, calling Ogles a "malignant clown and pathological liar," and saying "disgusting Islamophobes like you do not belong in Congress or in civilised society."
Swalwell said on X that the Muslims in his California district are "parents, entrepreneurs, police officers," adding: "They are American … This tweet is NOT American."
Representative Judy Chu called the comment "abhorrent," saying that "racism and hate don't belong in American society."
Ogles later responded to the criticism, claiming his comments wouldn't be a story if he said the same thing about Christians.
"My comments wouldn’t even be a news story if I had said this about Christians. Please spare me your moral outrage. Cry harder," he said.
'Anti-Muslim extremist'
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) also criticised Ogles, branding him an "anti-Muslim extremist."
CAIR Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell said in a statement that the First Amendment "guarantees religious freedom to everyone in our nation, including American Muslims."
"If any member of Congress had declared that 'Jews do not belong in America,' that politician would rightfully face condemnation and censure," he said.
Ogles previously drew criticism in 2024 after a video circulated showing him responding to a question from pro-Palestine activists about children killed in Gaza by saying, "We should kill them all."