{"id":2571884,"date":"2026-02-20T11:41:01","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T16:41:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republican-congressman-announces-protecting-puppies-from-sharia-act-amid-uproar-over-social-media-post\/"},"modified":"2026-02-20T11:43:40","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T16:43:40","slug":"republican-congressman-announces-protecting-puppies-from-sharia-act-amid-uproar-over-social-media-post","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/republican-congressman-announces-protecting-puppies-from-sharia-act-amid-uproar-over-social-media-post\/","title":{"rendered":"Republican Congressman Announces &#8216;Protecting Puppies From Sharia Act&#8217; Amid Uproar Over Social Media Post"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frepublican-congressman-announces-protecting-puppies-from-sharia-act-amid-uproar-over-social-media-post%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2571884&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Florida Republican rep. Randy Fine sparked a backlash after saying,if forced to choose,\u201cthe choice between our dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one.\u201d The remarks followed <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >online criticism tied<\/a> to a post by Nerdeen Kiswani, an ally of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who suggested Muslims view dogs as unclean. The New York Times reported Kiswani\u2019s post in the context of a NYC snowstorm and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/german-ballet-director-issues-apology-for-smearing-dog-feces-in-critics-face-asks-for-understanding-of-why-he-did-it\/\" title=\"German Ballet Director Issues Apology For Smearing Dog Feces In Critic\u2019s Face, Asks For \u2018Understanding\u2019 Of Why He Did It\">dog-feces<\/a> in the snow.Fine amplified the controversy by promoting a \u201cProtecting Puppies from Sharia Act\u201d that would bar federal funds to any government that treats dogs as haram. He defended his comments in a Newsmax interview, arguing that Democrats want to change American values and that his post was a response to a Muslim leader\u2019s statements in NYC. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-fbi-arrests-one-of-the-key-participants-behind-the-benghazi-attack-3\/\" title=\"Breaking: FBI Arrests &#039;One of the Key Participants Behind the Benghazi Attack&#039;\">article includes social media quotes<\/a> and embedded tweets related to the exchange.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Amid the barking of his critics, Republican Rep. Randy Fine of Florida has given them something to really howl about.<\/p>\n<p>Fine entered a<a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/dems-try-cancel-republican-congressman-declares-americans-will-not-give-dogs-appease-nycs-muslims\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> social media hornets&rsquo; nest<\/a> stirred up by an acolyte of far-left New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani who posted a snarky message on X that said &ldquo;NYC is coming to Islam. Dogs definitely have a place in society, just not as indoor pets. Like we&rsquo;ve said all along, they are unclean.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The comment was made by Mamdani supporter Nerdeen Kiswani, as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/02\/17\/us\/politics\/randy-fine-muslim-islamophobic-democrats.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The New York Times<\/a> reported, in the context of late January&rsquo;s snowstorm in the city and dog feces in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/futuristic-scenes-as-buffalo-freezes-over-at-least-16-people-dead\/\" title=\"Futuristic Scenes As Buffalo Freezes Over, At Least 16 People Dead\">snow drifts<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">For context, this is the leader of one of the key mainstream Muslim groups that supported Mamdani. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/zcIs4tVyly\">pic.twitter.com\/zcIs4tVyly<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Congressman Randy Fine (@RepFine) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RepFine\/status\/2023164125363265596?\">February 15, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadAnyclip() { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst container=document.getElementById(\"anyclipvideo\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!container) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=\"https:\/\/player.anyclip.com\/anyclip-widget\/lre-widget\/prod\/v1\/src\/lre.js\"; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"pubname\", \"westernjournalcom\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.setAttribute(\"widgetname\", \"001w000001jULVcAAO_M12924\");  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ append inside the container so player shows in correct spot \t\t\t\t\t\tcontainer.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadAnyclip(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #anyclipvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#anyclipvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Kiswani later tried to claim her post was meant to be humorous &mdash; &ldquo;mild, satirical&rdquo; as she put it, according to The New York Times.<\/p>\n<p>Fine, never shy about his opinions, then amplified the fuss by writing, &ldquo;If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The comment led to more abuse hurled at Fine and called for him to be muzzled.<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, Fine made it clear no one would make him leash his opinions.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">I am proud to introduce the Protecting Puppies from Sharia Act.<\/p>\n<p>Democrats are losing their minds because I made a simple statement&mdash;given a choice between our dogs and those who would ban them, the choice is easy.<\/p>\n<p>They can pound sand.<\/p>\n<p>This bill will <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-rep-bishop-introduces-amendments-to-ban-all-federal-funds-promoting-critical-race-theory\/\" title=\"EXCLUSIVE: Rep. Bishop Introduces Amendments To Ban All Federal Funds Promoting Critical Race Theory\">ban federal funds<\/a> to any&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/KjertyzUJc\">pic.twitter.com\/KjertyzUJc<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Congressman Randy Fine (@RepFine) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RepFine\/status\/2024624728778895838?\">February 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I am proud to introduce the Protecting Puppies from Sharia Act,&rdquo; he <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RepFine\/status\/2024624728778895838\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">wrote in a post<\/a> on X.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Democrats are losing their minds because I made a simple statement&mdash;given a choice between our dogs and those who would ban them, the choice is easy. They can pound sand,&rdquo; he wrote.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This bill will ban federal funds to any state or local government that considers dogs &lsquo;haram,&rsquo;&rdquo; he wrote, using a term in Sharia law for something that is forbidden. &ldquo;Proceed accordingly, Mamdani.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Fine, who is Jewish, had said in a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newsmax.com\/newsmax-tv\/randy-fine-x-muslims\/2026\/02\/17\/id\/1246381\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Newsmax interview<\/a> that he had no qualms about his post that led to calls for him to be sent to the dog house.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not enough for Democrats to think anyone who wants to come here illegally should be able to do that,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;They also think they should be able to get whatever free stuff they want, and now, they&rsquo;re demanding that we change our values and how we live as Americans,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;My post was in response to a major Muslim leader saying dogs should be forbidden from New York City because, to some Muslims, it bothers them,&rdquo; he said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Well, if they&rsquo;re going to make us choose between our dogs and them going home, the choice is easy and people should know,&rdquo; Fine said.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A paraphrase of the article:<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Florida Republican Rep. Randy Fine sparked a major backlash after sharing a social media exchange that began with a post by Nerdeen Kiswani, a supporter of NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Kiswani had written a provocative remark linking NYC to Islam and suggested that dogs are unclean in the context of a snowstorm, which Fine highlighted online.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Fine then amplified the controversy by arguing that if Americans were forced to choose between dogs and Muslims, the choice would be easy. Kiswani later said her post was meant as humor, but Fine doubled down with further comments.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Fine launched the banner statement that he introduced the \u201cProtecting Puppies from Sharia Act,\u201d claiming it would bar federal funds to any state or local government that treats dogs as haram (forbidden under Sharia law). He argued the issue was about defending American values and dogs, and he criticized Democrats for supporting what he described as importing or tolerating illegal immigration and \u201cfree stuff.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Fine, who is Jewish, also told Newsmax that he did not regret his post, even as it drew calls for him to be moderated or silenced. He said the choice between dogs and those who would ban them was easy and framed the situation as a defense of dogs.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The article notes that Kiswani later tried to recast the post as humorous, while Fine pressed on with his rhetoric and campaign-style messaging, portraying the issue as a stark clash over cultural values and animal welfare<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2571885,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/randy-fine-for-feb.-20-2026.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[50410,4762,74223,5894,3911],"class_list":["post-2571884","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-controversy-2","tag-legislation","tag-online-uproar","tag-politics","tag-republican"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/randy-fine-for-feb.-20-2026.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571884","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2571884"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571884\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2571888,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2571884\/revisions\/2571888"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2571885"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2571884"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2571884"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2571884"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}