Mike Johnson, speaker of the US House of Representatives, on Tuesday refused to condemn Republican lawmakers who recently made Islamophobic comments, saying only that he had spoken to them about their “tone.”
Democrats and religious tolerance groups have criticized the statements by Congressmen Andy Ogles of Tennessee and Randy Fine of Florida, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has called on Johnson to discipline the latter.
But the Republican president showed little interest in doing so when asked about the issue at a news conference during the GOP retreat in Doral, Florida.
“I’ve talked to those members and all members, as I always do, about our tone, our message and what we say,” Johnson said.
“There is a lot of energy in the country and a lot of popular feeling that the demand to impose Sharia law in the United States is a serious problem. That is what animates this,” the speaker continued.
“The language people use is different than what I would use. But I think it’s a serious problem.”
The speaker did not specify which parties advocate sharia law in the United States, which he described as “contrary to the American constitution.”
Ogles launched an Islamophobic rant on social media on Monday, writing that “Muslims do not belong in American society” and calling for the deportation of Democratic New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a naturalized Muslim U.S. citizen.
In response, Jeffries wrote on
Jeffries had similarly condemned Fine, who in recent weeks had made a series of Islamophobic comments on social media, including: “If we are forced to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not difficult.”
The minority leader described Fine as “a disgrace to the United States Congress” and urged Johnson to “hold this so-called member of Congress accountable.”
