Local GOP Posts Unhinged, Racist Screed Against America's First Muslim Congressman

The Minnesota Republican Party is scrambling to explain how a jaw-droppingly racist rant against Representative Keith Ellison, America’s first Muslim congressman, ended up on one of its Facebook pages.

The post, which has since been deleted, featured a picture of Ellison during a turkey hunting trip, and called the congressman the “Minnesota’s Head Muslim Goat Humper.” It went on to suggest that Ellison’s friendship with Democratic Rep. Collin Peterson in the seventh district would lead to “Muslim refugees coming to western Minnesota.”

The post, first noticed on Monday evening by political commentator Michael Brodkrob, prompted immediate outrage.

In a statement, state DFL chairman Ken Martin called “the ignorance and bigotry displayed in this post… staggering and disheartening.”

Newly elected MN State GOP chair Jennifer Carnahan—on the job for less than a week—also took a hard line against the racist post, calling it “hate speech” on Twitter.

On Facebook, Carnahan demanded the resignation of the as-of-yet unidentified MNGOP staffer who shared the racist image in the first place. According to a short apology post on the MNGOP Seventh District Facebook page, that staffer has since stepped down. Carnahan applauded the decision, tweeting that “this person no longer represents our party.”

And with that, the one and only Islamophobe in the GOP was gone. There definitely aren’t any more of them, trust us.