Laura Loomer recently took to X to share a strong opinion about a specific minority group in American politics. She wrote, “I don’t want Muslims in positions of elected office and I don’t want Muslims having financial ties to the GOP. I don’t like Islam. If I could wave a magic wand, I would round up Muslims and deport them from America. Most MAGA voters agree with me. Good luck running for office and trying to convince the MAGA base that we need more Muslims in America. Good luck.”
Her post triggered a strong debate in the comments. One person to call her out on her views was British American journalist Mehdi Hasan. He first rewrote her post to make a point: “’I don’t want Jews in positions of elected office and I don’t want Jews having financial ties to the Democratic Party. I don’t like Judaism. If I could wave a magic wand, I would round up Jews and deport them from America. Most Democratic voters agree with me.’”
Mehdi then pointed out, “Can you imagine if a top adviser to, and ally of, President Joe Biden had said this? It would be the only story in America. For days and weeks on end. Biden and Dem members of Congress would be asked about nothing else by rightly outraged reporters. So every American political reporter, editor, anchor, executive producer, reading this right now: ask yourself, why aren’t you as outraged when it’s Muslims not Jews, and Trump’s ally not Biden’s?”
Hate vs Political posturing
Loomer’s rhetoric and Hasan’s sharp response are a clear look into a turbulent time in the nation when it comes to prejudice against minorities. With the recent election of Abdul El-Sayed and the popularity of Zohran Mamdani, Muslim community leaders are becoming more visible. As a result, attacks based on religion have become more commonplace.
According to The Washington Post, after El-Sayed won the Democratic Senate nomination in Michigan, religion became a recurring theme in conservative conversation online. They noted that one of the first posts from a Republican, Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, called the senator “RADICAL ISLAMIST” on social media.
Their analysis noted that since then, 1 in 3 posts on average from right-wing figures about El-Sayed mentioned Islam, Muslims, or sharia rather than his policies. The outlet noted that in response to the GOP Senate group calling him a “radical socialist,” Laura Loomer stated that they hadn’t gone far enough.
Loomer wrote, “Please call him a jihadist. The word socialist has no meaning. The GOP needs to start naming the Islamic threat by its name or @MikeRogersForMI will lose this race.”
FOX News’ coverage regarding El-Sayed has focused on what they consider his radical ties. They noted that he received funding from individuals who belong to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), highlighting that the organization was designated a terrorist organization by the UAE. The designation was labelled as bizarre by the organization, and The Washington Post pointed to the seeming prevalence of local politics in the decision.
In their report, FOX noted individual donors to highlight alleged ties to Hamas. The outlet also recently reported on concerns raised by former GOP gubernatorial candidate Tudor Dixon. She reportedly characterized El-Sayed’s opposition to Sharia law bans as something that would “permanently change America.”
The current climate of tension is further reflected in data regarding Islamophobia. According to Reuters, the Council on American-Islamic Relations recorded 8,683 anti-Muslim and anti-Arab complaints in 2025. It is the highest figure since the organization began tracking this data in 1996. The report noted that this rise in complaints is partly driven by the administration of President Donald Trump.
The administration’s policies have included a crackdown on pro-Palestinian protests and changes to immigration enforcement. Reuters reports that the Trump administration has attempted to deport foreign protesters and threatened to freeze funding for universities that hosted protests. The Council on American-Islamic Relations stated, “The Trump administration framed anyone who holds pro-Palestinian views as inherently threatening.”
Per the outlet, Trump denied claims of discrimination, asserting that his administration’s goal is to improve domestic security and curb illegal immigration. However, advocates argue that these actions often violate due process and create unsafe environments for minority communities.
Published: Aug 23, 2026 01:30 pm