Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy Says “Action Will Be Taken” Against GOP Rep. Steve King For Defense Of White Supremacy

On Sunday, Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), the GOP House minority leader, said “action will be taken” following Rep. Steve King‘s (R-Iowa)’s recent controversial remark on white supremacy.

“That language has no place in America,” McCarthy stated on CBS’s Face the Nation. 

The top House Republican added: “That is not the America I know, and it is most definitely not the party of Lincoln. I have a scheduled meeting with him on Monday, and I will tell you this: I’ve watched on the other side that they do not take action when their members say something like this. Action will be taken. I’m having a serious conversation with Congressman Steve King on his future and role in this Republican Party.”

Earlier this month, King sparked outrage after he appeared to defend white nationalism while speaking to The New York Times. 

“White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive?” the congressman asked.

King then added he considered himself “simply a nationalist” and denounced “anyone that supports this evil and bigoted ideology.”

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McCarthy did not specify how King would be reprimanded, but added that he believes all Americans “are created equal.”

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) also rebuked King’s comments in an interview on NBC’s Meet the Press. 

“What Steve King said was stupid. It was stupid. It was hurtful. It was wrong. And he needs to stop it,” said 48-year-old Cruz, who was re-elected in November. “I think all of us ought to be united regardless of party in saying, white supremacism, white nationalism is hatred, it is bigotry, it is evil, it is wrong. And I think we need that clarity and I’m certainly going to urge everyone to provide that clarity.”

Last year, King made several other similar remarks that drew strong criticism for evoking white supremacist sentiments. The Iowa lawmaker even once lashed out at a town hall attendee who asked him about his ties to white nationalists. Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Steve Stivers (R-OH) also condemned King in October.

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