(03/10/2026) Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles posted on social media on Monday that “Muslims don’t belong in American society.” In the same post, he added: “Pluralism is a lie.”

Ogles, a Republican and member of the hard-right Freedom Caucus, did not back down. In follow-up posts, he pointed to recent incidents involving Muslim suspects and wrote that “if Muslims want to practice their law and exemplify Muhammadan culture,” they should go to one of the dozens of “Islamic countries in the world.” He also retweeted content from Laura Loomer and wrote: “Congress must pass my Muslim Ban today!”

Ogles is not just talking. He has introduced the Halt Immigration from Countries with Inadequate Verification Capabilities Act, which would ban immigration to the United States from a list of Muslim-majority countries including Iran, Libya, Syria, and Yemen. According to Politico, the bill has already drawn support from Rep. Randy Fine of Florida, another Republican who has made anti-Muslim rhetoric a centerpiece of his time in Congress. Fine said in response that “we must protect America from jihadists.”

This is not new territory for Ogles. As The New Republic reported, he said last year that America “should kill ’em all” regarding Palestinians in Gaza. He called for sending pro-Palestine student protesters to Gaza. He used footage of September 11 to attack Zohran Mamdani before Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City. On his podcast in November, he said of Muslims: “The only thing they can do is essentially come to our nation and breed their way through our society.”

Democrats Condemn. Republicans Stay Silent.

Democratic lawmakers moved quickly. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called Ogles a “malignant clown” and wrote that Islamophobes “do not belong in Congress or in civilized society.” House Minority Whip Katherine Clark said his words do not belong in American society and that “Republicans who support it don’t belong in Congress.” Rep. Debbie Dingell of Michigan, who represents a large Muslim community, called the statement “as un-American as it gets” and demanded Republicans denounce it immediately.

Rep. Eric Swalwell of California wrote: “I don’t know how many Muslims are in this guy’s district. I know there are tens of thousands in mine. They are parents. Entrepreneurs. Police officers. The firefighter-paramedic giving CPR to save your life. They are us. They are American.”

One notable Republican voice did push back. Richard Grenell, a special envoy for President Trump and the interim president of the Kennedy Center, posted: “Stop attacking the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.”

But Republican leadership did not respond. According to NPR and Politico, the offices of House Speaker Mike Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, and Majority Whip Tom Emmer did not respond to requests for comment on Ogles’s statement.

Ogles has faced no consequences from his party. Neither has Fine, who in February posted that the “choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one.” Multiple Democrats called for Fine’s resignation at the time. Republican leaders said nothing then either.

There are roughly 3.5 million Muslims living in the United States. One of them could be the paramedic who saves Andy Ogles’s life. His party does not appear to have a problem with what he said about them.