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Nalin Haley calls for Mehdi Hasan’s deportation in fiery online clash
The exchange began after Haley posted remarks criticizing immigration and foreign worker programs.
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Malvika Choudhary - Fri, 24, Oct 2025
- 16:50 EDT
- 35
Nalin Haley/ Mehdi Hasan / X (Nalin Haley/Mehdi Hasan)
Nalin Haley, son of Republican leader and former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, sparked widespread backlash after calling for journalist Mehdi Hasan to be denaturalized and deported, accusing him of “constantly complaining about America.”
The remarks came during a heated exchange on X over immigration. Responding to the British-American journalist, the 24-year-old wrote, “This ain’t 1969, bud. And you should be denaturalized. All you do is complain about America anyway.”
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As the argument escalated, Haley doubled down: “Why the hell are you here if all you do is complain and want to change America? Denaturalized isn’t enough — anyone with this mindset should be deported. Including you.”
Explaining their struggles back then ≠ complaining. In her same book she mentions that her and my grandparents firmly believed that the US is the greatest country on earth. America has given you so many opportunities and you use them to constantly trash it while making A LOT of… https://t.co/Fdm1BUk4GQ
— Nalin Haley (@Nalin_Haley) October 23, 2025
Hasan, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in the U.K. to Indian-origin parents, had earlier reminded Haley of his family’s own immigrant background.
“Your grandfather had to confront the same bogus anti-immigrant arguments from the right when he moved to the U.S. for work in 1969,” Hasan wrote, referring to Nikki Haley’s late father, Ajit Singh Randhawa, who migrated from Punjab to the United States and taught biology at Voorhees College in South Carolina until his passing in 2024.
The exchange began after Haley posted remarks criticizing immigration and foreign worker programs. Referring to the Trump administration’s new policy imposing a $100,000 fee on H-1B visa applications, he argued that immigration was hurting American workers and suggested that states should have the power to reject H-1B visa holders.
“I don’t care where you are from. Even if it’s Canada, we have to stop mass migration,” Haley wrote. “It’s irresponsible to let in immigrants when companies already aren’t hiring, AI is replacing many jobs, and the economy is fragile. The last thing we need is foreigners taking away jobs Americans can do.”
Hasan’s response — highlighting Haley’s own family’s immigrant story — appeared to strike a nerve. Haley replied, “My grandfather didn’t complain about America,” prompting Hasan to share a passage from Nikki Haley’s memoir describing her parents’ early struggles in South Carolina.
“Explaining their struggles back then ≠ complaining,” Haley retorted. “In her same book she mentions that she and my grandparents firmly believed that the U.S. is the greatest country on earth.”
The online confrontation quickly went viral, drawing both criticism and support. Many users accused Haley of hypocrisy and intolerance. “You’re calling for deporting a U.S. citizen for criticism — that’s not patriotism, that’s authoritarianism,” one user wrote. Another added, “Your own family wouldn’t have been allowed into America if your policies existed back then.”
Supporters defended Haley’s remarks as a stand against “anti-American sentiment” and in support of stricter immigration policies. “He’s not against immigrants, he’s against uncontrolled immigration,” one user posted.
Both Nalin Haley and Mehdi Hasan trace their roots to India — Hasan’s parents migrated to the U.K. from Hyderabad before he became a U.S. citizen, while Haley’s grandparents arrived from Punjab more than five decades ago.
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