The day after the election, University of Iowa Health Care pediatric cardiology fellow Mayank Sharma stirred controversy with a strongly-worded post on X, formerly known as Twitter, seemingly directed at a pro-Trump account that describes itself as a news alert service.

“Well I hope you lose your kid in a school [shooting], already you have nothing to lose, it won’t matter to you anyways,” Sharma’s post read. “Prepare for your kid’s funeral.”

Though quickly deleted, a screenshot was shared by the far-right Twitter account Libs of TikTok, where it has amassed 685,000 views as of Nov. 14. Libs of TikTok, with 3.7 million followers, often highlights lesser-known individuals sharing provocative left-wing views on social media.

Sharma’s account on X has since been deleted, but a screenshot shows he was seemingly responding to a comment from the account Moonstone Capital that read, “stay mad loser.” There is no indication that Moonstone Capital or its content is affiliated with the UI or UIHC.

In reaction to the tweet, Republican State Representative Carter Nordman wrote a letter to UI President Barbara Wilson, arguing that Sharma’s statement potentially violates multiple Iowa Administrative Codes, including those concerning professional conduct, mental fitness, and ethical standards.

“Dr. Sharma’s comments are repulsive, deeply unprofessional, and not representative of the world-class operations at UI Health Care,” Nordman’s letter read.

Nordman’s office did not respond to The Daily Iowan’s request for comment.

While Nordman urged for Sharma’s termination, free speech experts disagree.

David Keating, president of the Institute of Free Speech, described Sharma’s tweet as obnoxious, but he maintained that it’s protected under the First Amendment.

“If the state representative is a believer in free speech, he should withdraw the letter,” Keating said, referencing Nordman.

Keating also urged Wilson not to fulfill Nordman’s demand for Sharma’s termination.

“My hope is the adults will just ignore the letter and go about their business trying to provide a good education for the students,” Keating said.

In his letter, Nordman stated his respect for the constitutional right of free speech but wrote that Sharma’s tweet, “goes well beyond “disagreeing” with a political figure.”

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But Graham Piro, a fellow at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, explained that even if Sharma’s tweet was more inflammatory than simply disagreeing, it is still protected speech as long as it lacks specific intent to incite violence or harassment.

“Our commitment to the First Amendment is most tested when the speech at hand is offensive,” Piro said. “Certainly, the way that this tweet is framed, it’s going to be offensive to people. But the First Amendment protects a lot of offensive speech.”

Piro added that, while supporting free speech is crucial, Sharma’s employment may still be subject to specific university policies.

“In regard to the culture for free speech on campus, it is definitely not good for the university to fire him for this post,” Piro said. “But in terms of the specifics regarding his position, that’s going to be a little bit more fact dependent.”

The UI’s guidelines on faculty political activity affirm the university’s full support for faculty members’ constitutional rights to express personal opinions on political candidates and issues, while also noting certain caveats.

“As employees of a public institution, however, faculty have a responsibility when exercising these rights to make it clear that their opinions are their own and that they do not speak for the university,” the guidelines read.

According to the UI’s freedom of speech page, the university generally respects faculty members’ rights to off-duty expression on personal social media but may intervene if posts violate policy, such as by threatening or intimidating others.

As of Nov. 14, Sharma’s profile has been removed from UI Health Care’s pediatric cardiology fellowship page. Jeneane Beck, UI’s assistant vice president for external relations, shared UI Health Care’s statement on the matter with the DI.

“The university is aware of the situation and is reviewing the matter in accordance with our policies. The University of Iowa strongly objects to violence,” the statement read.