Jody Hice, the Republican candidate running for a U.S. House seat in Georgia's 10th district, stated Islam is not really a religion and that it doesn't deserve the First Amendment protection of religious liberty.

The Baptist minister and conservative radio talk show host published his anti-Islamic remarks in his book, "It's Now Or Never" back in 2012, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

"Although Islam has a religious component, it is much more than a simple religious ideology," Rev. Hice wrote. "It is a complete geo-political structure and, as such, does not deserve First Amendment protection."

The House candidate also talked about his beliefs in the conspiracy theory that the Muslim Brotherhood is secretly infiltrating the America in a plot to impose Sharia law on the nation.

Rev. Hice made similar comments stating that Islam should not be recognized under the U.S. Constitution back in 2011 during an event with the Coweta County Tea Party Patriots, reports The Citizen.

"Most people think Islam is a religion, it's not. It's a totalitarian way of life with a religious component. But it's much larger. It's a geo-political system that has governmental, financial, military, legal and religious components. And it's a totalitarian system that encompasses every aspect of life and it should not be protected [under U.S. law]," he told Tea Party members.

"This is not a tolerant, peaceful religion even though some Muslims are peaceful. Radical Muslims believe that Sharia is required by God and must be imposed worldwide. It's a movement to take over the world by force. A global caliphate is the objective," he added.

Rev. Hice is running in the Republican primary for Rep. Paul Broun's former seat. After winning the Republican primary with a narrow victory, he is now running against Mike Collins. The winner of the July 22 runoff will go on to face Democrat Ken Dious in the November midterm elections, reports Raw Story.