The Sharia-Free America Caucus is looking to expand its work beyond Congress and into state governments in the 120th Congress.
Indiana Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith told The Daily Signal he would be '100 percent' in on working with the caucus. He said the idea could help protect Indiana from what he described as a foreign law that enforces female genital mutilation and creates a hostile environment for those of other religions.
Beckwith said his office gets calls on the issue almost every day and called it an '80/20 issue.' He also said he has support from both Republicans and Democrats who see the rise of Sharia as a problem.
He said awareness matters because many people do not understand what Sharia law entails. Beckwith called Islam 'a political and military ideology' and said Sharia law would 'destroy our Constitution.'
He said Indiana could follow Florida and Texas in backing the effort. Rep. Randy Fine, R-Fla., said Florida has 'led' on banning Sharia and fighting back against the threat of mainstream Islam. He also pointed to Texas, where Islamic complexes have continued to emerge.
In Minnesota, state Sen. Michael Holmstrom has already unveiled a similar caucus in the Legislature. Amy Mek, of the RISE Foundation, said local anti-Sharia caucuses are a practical way to advance that work and said states retain the authority and responsibility to defend America when the federal government does not act.
Why it matters: the push is moving from federal messaging to state-level policy fights. That puts the fight over religious law, constitutional limits and local authority closer to voters and lawmakers.
The bottom line: supporters see this as a defensive move to protect the Constitution. Critics are not quoted in the source, but the expansion signals the caucus wants more than speeches — it wants statutes, allies and statehouse muscle.