Political tempers flared in Annapolis on Monday when House Speaker Joseline Peña‑Melnyk demanded that two Republican delegates apologize and pull an episode of their social‑media video series after it used racist language to describe a fellow lawmaker. The comments targeted Del. Chao Wu, an immigrant and data scientist who represents parts of Howard and Montgomery counties.
Peña‑Melnyk’s letter and the demand
In a letter to Dels. Brian Chisholm and Mark Fisher, Peña‑Melnyk wrote, “Reducing a colleague to harmful stereotypes, questioning his loyalty because of where he was born, and mocking the way he speaks is disrespectful and unbecoming of anyone entrusted with public service,” as reported by The Daily Record. She asked the delegates to remove the episode and issue an apology to the full House, an explicit call for the two Republicans to publicly address their posts.
AAPI caucus alleges mocking and spy accusations
In a separate letter, the Maryland Legislative Asian American and Pacific Islander Caucus alleged that Chisholm and Fisher used language accusing Del. Chao Wu of being a Chinese communist spy, mocked his accent, and questioned his motive for introducing a bill on AI training‑data transparency, according to The Daily Record. Wu pushed back in the correspondence, writing, “I am a proud new American and a public servant; false accusations and far-right conspiracy theories will not distract me from my work for Maryland families,” the caucus noted.
Where the episode was posted
Fisher has been posting segments of a video series titled “Dumbest Bill in America,” which features Chisholm, across his social channels, and the disputed episode has been circulating on those accounts. Portions of the clip are available on Fisher’s Facebook page and on his X/Twitter feed, where viewer complaints helped prompt Peña‑Melnyk’s intervention. The original clip appears on Fisher’s page here: Friends of Mark Fisher (Facebook).
About Del. Chao Wu
Del. Chao Wu represents District 9A, which includes parts of Howard and Montgomery counties, and is a Ph.D.‑trained data scientist who holds leadership roles in the House, according to his Maryland State Archives biography. This session, Wu has focused on proposals that aim to increase transparency around the data used to train artificial‑intelligence systems, the very legislation the episode aimed at. His office and the AAPI caucus have characterized the video’s rhetoric as part of a broader pattern of anti‑Asian attacks in politics.
What comes next
Peña‑Melnyk’s demand puts public pressure on two members of the House GOP and the Maryland Freedom Caucus to answer for the remarks and decide whether they will take the episode down. House leaders have tools to enforce decorum, but how Chisholm and Fisher choose to respond, and whether they remove the post or apologize, will determine if the dispute escalates. Hoodline will update this story if either delegate issues a public response or if leadership takes further action.
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