Steve King condemns white supremacy in vote over his comments on white supremacy

WASHINGTON — Steve King, the pariah Iowa Republican congressman, joins 423 other members of the House in condemning white supremacy, in a resolution responding to his musings on white supremacy.

The US House of Representatives voted Tuesday 424-1 to condemn white supremacy, with members taking to the floor to make clear that they were voting against King, who last week wondered in an interview with The New York Times why the terms “white supremacist” and “white nationalist” were offensive.

“Well, I will tell him, and anyone else who may be confused,” said Rep. Jerry Nadler, the Jewish chairman of the House Judiciary committee. “These hateful ideologies are dangerous not just because they, too often, lead to violence.” Nadler mentioned the October 2018 massacre of 11 Jewish worshipers in Pittsburgh and the deadly August 2017 neo-Nazi march in Charlottesville, Virginia.

King said he agrees with the sentiments in the resolution, and continues to defend his remarks, saying they were misconstrued — he meant only to wonder why the term “Western civilization” caused offense.

The single vote against was by Rep. Bobby Rush, an Illinois Democrat, who wanted the body to go farther and censure King.

— JTA