Republican compares Democrats to 'Muslim terrorists'

Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL) smeared Muslims and Democrats as terrorists during a television appearance to discuss the government shutdown.

The Florida Republican, who has earned a reputation for making Islamophobic remarks, was asked during an appearance on Newsmax2 to comment on efforts to reach an agreement on a government spending bill, and he falsely claimed that Democrats were blocking the measure to protect free health care for undocumented migrants.

"I don't negotiate with terrorists," Fine said, "and what we've learned in whether it's dealing with Muslim terrorists or Democrats, you've got to stand and you've got to do the right thing. I hope that we stand firm and tell them no, we're not going to retreat on giving free health care to illegal immigrants. We're just not, and hopefully the American people will rise up and tell them to stop the clown show and get the government re-opened."

President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other Republicans have repeatedly made the false claim about health care for immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally, but Democrats say they're seeking an extension of tax credits to buy insurance on the Affordable Care Act exchange and the reversal of Medicaid cuts in the GOP tax bill passed in July.

Undocumented immigrants are not eligible for any federal health care programs, but hospitals do receive Medicaid reimbursement for emergency care they're obligated to provide. That spending accounted for less than 1 percent of total Medicaid spending between fiscal years 2017 and 2023.