Rep Randy Fine to bring 4-legged guest Sadie to Trump's State of the Union amid backlash over X post

Rep. Randy Fine invites his father and a service dog to President Trump’s address after backlash over his controversial X post about choosing “between dogs and Muslims." House Of Representatives Rep Randy Fine to bring 4-legged guest Sadie to Trump's State of the Union amid backlash over X post Republican Rep Randy Fine is also bringing his father, Alan Fine, to Trump's SOTU address By Elizabeth Elkind Fox News Published February 23, 2026 4:14pm EST Facebook Twitter Threads Flipboard Comments Print Email Add Fox News on Google close Video Mamdani's spending plan reportedly includes $10B for migrants coming to NYC Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, R-Ark., joins 'Saturday in America' reacting to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's tax hikes, proposed budget and social media bans for minors across the U.S. NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! FIRST ON FOX: Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., is using President Donald Trump's State of the Union to send a message to critics of an X post he made about choosing "between dogs and Muslims." Fine's guest to Trump's primetime address will be his father, Alan Fine, along with his father's seeing-eye service dog, Sadie. "I think it's also important, given the issues that I burst into the public consciousness last week, to talk about the importance of our dogs as Americans," Fine told Fox News Digital on Monday. "My father's seeing-eye dog is part of our family and allows him to live his life, and I'm going to fight like hell against anyone who wants to take it away." The dog will be outfitted with a shirt that reads, "Don't tread on me," which has become Fine's rallying cry against the outpouring of rage from Democrats over his controversial X post. Rep. Randy Fine is bringing his father to the State of the Union, along with his father's seeing-eye dog, Sadie. (Office of Rep. Randy Fine) Last week, Fine shared a screenshot from X of Palestinian Muslim activist Nerdeen Kiswani writing, "Finally, NYC is coming to Islam. Dogs definitely have a place in society, just not as indoor pets. Like we’ve said all along, they are unclean."Fine wrote on the platform in response, "If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one." It prompted an outpouring of criticism from House Democrats, with calls ranging from a censure to Fine's outright ouster from Congress.REPUBLICAN WANTS JUDGES HELD ACCOUNTABLE IF THEY RELEASE REPEAT VIOLENT CRIMINALS WHO STRIKE AGAIN House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., posted on X, "House Democrats will not let the racist and bigoted behavior of Randy Fine go unchecked. Accountability is coming to all of these sick extremists when the gavels change hands in November, if not sooner." Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., leaves the U.S. Capitol after the last votes of the week in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 4, 2025. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images) The Florida Republican responded to the criticism by questioning the lack of widespread outrage when a member of the House Democratic Caucus, nonvoting Del. Stacey Plaskett, D-V.I., was found to have been texting Jeffrey Epstein during a congressional hearing, and when Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., was accused of misusing COVID-19 pandemic funds."I think the same people that don't have a problem with a member of Congress texting Jeffrey Epstein, the same members of Congress who don't have a problem with a member who stole $5 million of money that was supposed to go to people suffering from natural disasters … somehow have a problem with a member of Congress who says Americans have a right to have a dog and if people don't like it, they can leave," Fine said. "So they can shove it."Kiswani has since posted that her initial comment was meant to be a joke and called Fine's X post "genocidal." President Donald Trump delivers his joint address to Congress at the U.S. Capitol on March 4, 2025. (Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images) But he has dug in since then, even introducing a resolution to Congress called the "Protecting Puppies from Sharia Act."CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APPHis father, Alan Fine, said he was eager to see his son on the House floor as a member of Congress. "I'm actually more excited to be here to watch my son," he said. "More to see him than the president, to be quite honest. I guess that's because I'm a Jewish father." Related Article House GOP unveils resolution to condemn Boulder terror attack, call for mass deportation of overstayed visas Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to [email protected] Related Topics House Of RepresentativesPoliticsState of the UnionDonald Trump More from Politics 1 min ago Democrats demanding ICE reforms lose airport escorts in shutdown they triggered