A Minnesota Republican has resigned his county leadership post over some recent incendiary anti-Muslim posts on Facebook.

Jack Whitley announced that he was stepping down as Big Stone County Republican Party chairman Friday, days after his online screeds also got him fired from his job at an Ortonville hardware store. Among other things, Whitley had written that Muslims are "parasites" and "terrorists," and that someone should "FRAG 'EM!"

Whitley told the Associated Press on Friday that he had not planned to resign, but was asked to do so by other members of the county GOP board.

Whitley's remarks sparked a backlash across the political and religious spectrum. Minnesota Republican Party Chairman Keith Downey issued a statement saying Whitley's rhetoric "could not be further from the Republican Party's beliefs."

The owners of Hardware Hank in Ortonville, where Whitley had worked for several years, fired him earlier this week after he refused to back down. Facing boycott threats over his statements, the store posted a statement of its own on Facebook, saying "this person has brought shame to us personally, to our business, our community, our county and the Republican Party."

Throughout the controversy, Whitley remained unrepentant.

Just before deleting his Facebook page, he posted: "I will not apologize and I will not compromise. They either need to repent except [sic] Jesus Chist [sic] or leave the country … If you want to consider this a call to arms, then so be it."

Whitley declined to answer whether he still believes what he wrote about Muslims.

STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS