Florida GOP Congressman Blasted for ‘Blatantly Racist’ Tweet Comparing NYC Mayoral Candidate to Ayatollah
Rep. Randy Fine, R-South Brevard County, closes on a gambling bill during a special session, Wednesday, May 19, 2021, in Tallahassee, Fla. (AP Photo/Steve Cannon, File)
Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL) sparked outrage online for a tweet in which he compared New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani (D) to the Supreme Leader of Iran.
At the time of writing, Mamdani was the second-leading Democratic candidate in the state behind former NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo. In his tweet posted Thursday evening, Fine urged voters in the city to not allow Mamdani to win the upcoming Democratic primary.
“Zohran Mamdani would do to New York City what Khomeini and Khamenei did to Tehran,” Fine said. “We cannot let radical Muslims turn America into a Shiite caliphate.”
Unsurprisingly, that tweet was met with a massive wave of backlash.
As noted by former Ohio senator Nina Turner, that tweet came just minutes after it was first reported that the NYPD was investigating a bomb threat against Mamdani.
“Zohran Mamdani had a bomb threat made against him today,” she said in a tweet, “there was an assassination of a Democratic lawmaker not even a week ago, and now a GOP congressman is saying this.”
Some also used the tweet to criticize the media, arguing that outlets haven’t done a sufficient job calling out Fine for his rhetoric.
—
New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!
Comments
↓ Scroll down for comments ↓