Steve King: How did white supremacist become offensive?

[BmorePat87]

In an interview with NYT's, Steve King questioned how terms like "white supremacist" and "white nationalist" became offensive. He may want to ask the Austrian Neo Nazi's he meets with.

Quote:[King] made national headlines for endorsing a Toronto mayoral candidate with neo-Nazi ties and for meeting with a far-right Austrian party accused of trivializing the Holocaust. On Twitter, he follows an Australian anti-Semitic activist, who proposed hanging a portrait of Hitler “in every classroom.” And in October, the chairman of the Republican House elections committee, Representative Steve Stivers of Ohio, condemned Mr. King, saying, “We must stand up against white supremacy and hate in all forms.”

Mr. King lost corporate agriculture donors like Purina, Land O’Lakes and Smithfield. He dropped from an 18-point lead over his Democratic opponent in his internal polls to barely squeaking out a three-point win on Election Day. On Wednesday, Mr. King drew a formidable challenger for his Fourth District seat in the 2020 Republican primary: Randy Feenstra, an assistant majority leader in the State Senate, who said Mr. King had left Iowa “without a seat at the table” because of “sideshows” and “distractions.’’

Mr. King, in the interview, said he was not a racist. He pointed to his Twitter timeline showing him greeting Iowans of all races and religions in his Washington office. (The same office once displayed a Confederate flag on his desk.)

At the same time, he said, he supports immigrants who enter the country legally and fully assimilate because what matters more than race is “the culture of America” based on values brought to the United States by whites from Europe.

“White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive?” Mr. King said. “Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization?”

After this article was published Thursday, Mr. King issued a public statement calling himself a “nationalist” and defending his support of “western civilization’s values,” and said he was not an advocate for “white nationalism and white supremacy.” “I want to make one thing abundantly clear: I reject those labels and the evil ideology they define,” he wrote.

[*bfine32*]

0 problem with immigrants being asked to assimilate.

[hollodero]

(01-10-2019, 10:49 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: In an interview with NYT's, Steve King questioned how terms like "white supremacist" and "white nationalist" became offensive. He may want to ask the Austrian Neo Nazi's he meets with.

Not to take too much away from that, but Austrian Neonazis takes it a bit far. Party's far right, sure, but not predominantly Naziesque. 

Not that it matters, not that it makes things good. But still.

[Belsnickel]

This will be King's last term in Congress. His margin went down 17 points last year and he's going to be primaried in 2020. If he isn't censured/expelled before then, he will be gone with the next Congress.

[GMDino]

(01-10-2019, 11:48 PM)bfine32 Wrote: 0 problem with immigrants being asked to assimilate.

What about the rest?

Quote:“White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive?” Mr. King said. “Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization?”

Your pulling one sentence out while ignoring the point that he thinks being a white nationalist and white supremacist shouldn't be considered offense, while typical, is not looking at the point of the thread.

[*Nately120*]

(01-10-2019, 11:48 PM)bfine32 Wrote: 0 problem with immigrants being asked to assimilate.

Depends on why they are here.  I know brain surgeons who are immigrants and I don't want to ask them to put on 100lbs and start watching daytime television.

[BengalHawk62]

(01-11-2019, 09:54 AM)Belsnickel Wrote: This will be King's last term in Congress. His margin went down 17 points last year and he's going to be primaried in 2020. If he isn't censured/expelled before then, he will be gone with the next Congress.

I’m not so sure. He is beloved by his constituents in NW Iowa. Ya he had a close call in his latest test but if no one is willing to stand up to him, I see him winning again.
Rich farmers have a lot of pull because I don’t know a single person who voted for him this last time around. If he wasn’t going to lose then, I don’t think anything can stop him in the next go round.


It’s the same situation as we got in the White House. He can walk down 5th Avenue, shoot somebody, and his supporters won’t care. They both can and will get away with anything.

[*bfine32*]

(01-11-2019, 10:27 AM)GMDino Wrote: What about the rest?


Your pulling one sentence out while ignoring the point that he thinks being a white nationalist and white supremacist shouldn't be considered offense, while typical, is not looking at the point of the thread.

I looked at the point of the message. Perhaps I didn't look at the point you wanted me to. As for the words; inflammatory and uncalled for, put I agree with the point of assimilation; even if I don't agree with the words used to convey the message.

Some will miss the point and focus on the words. You know anyone like that?

[GMDino]

(01-11-2019, 05:02 PM)bfine32 Wrote: I looked at the point of the message. Perhaps I didn't look at the point you wanted me to. As for the words; inflammatory and uncalled for, put I agree with the point of assimilation; even if I don't agree with the words used to convey the message.

Some will miss the point and focus on the words. You know anyone like that?

Yeah, a lot of people ignore the actual words people they like use so they can talk about "what they really meant".  Sad.

[*bfine32*]

(01-11-2019, 05:49 PM)GMDino Wrote: Yeah, a lot of people ignore the actual words people they like use so they can talk about "what they really meant".  Sad.

Yep, and some miss the forest because of the trees.

[GMDino]

(01-11-2019, 06:12 PM)bfine32 Wrote: Yep, and some miss the forest because of the trees.

Aye.  And it's a shame.

Glad we can agree that some people do this.  

[BengalHawk62]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2019/01/14/politics/mitch-mcconnell-steve-king-condemnation/index.html

[BmorePat87]

Republican steering committee removed him from his new committee assignments. David Duke Jr was the chairman of the subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice when the GOP was in charge.

Vote planned tomorrow to officially "disapproving" of his comments and there's a bill being introduced to formally censure him.

[GMDino]

Nice to see members of the GOP willing to stand up a bit!

[BmorePat87]

When asked about Steve King's comments, Trump first asked "who?" and then said he honestly hasn't been following that story.

[GMDino]

(01-15-2019, 10:45 AM)BmorePat87 Wrote: When asked about Steve King's comments, Trump first asked "who?" and then said he honestly hasn't been following that story.

I guess they didn't mention in on Fox & Friends.

[Yojimbo]

(01-10-2019, 11:48 PM)bfine32 Wrote: 0 problem with immigrants being asked to assimilate.

Assimilate to what standard? Who sets that standard? Do all people that live in this country have to follow the same rules, speak the same way, eat the same way, dance the same way, worship the same way, love the same way?

[jj22]

(01-10-2019, 11:48 PM)bfine32 Wrote: 0 problem with immigrants being asked to assimilate.

So as far as the rest you must be curious as to how those terms got so offensive too?

This is why King won't be in any trouble with Trump supporters and is likely a top candidate for the 2024 GOP nomination.

This is unfortunately a popular feeling amongst them.

[Belsnickel]

I'm a western Iowa newspaper owner who has chronicled @SteveKingIA and his troubling remarks for 2 decades. His latest comments, the ones generating national controversy, wouldn't even make my Top 10 list of most distressing Steve King comments https://t.co/G4PLwfqRYq pic.twitter.com/tmk7g8RYbv

— Douglas W. Burns (@douglaswburns) January 16, 2019

[BengalHawk62]

(01-16-2019, 03:11 PM)Belsnickel Wrote:

I'm a western Iowa newspaper owner who has chronicled @SteveKingIA and his troubling remarks for 2 decades. His latest comments, the ones generating national controversy, wouldn't even make my Top 10 list of most distressing Steve King comments https://t.co/G4PLwfqRYq pic.twitter.com/tmk7g8RYbv

— Douglas W. Burns (@douglaswburns) January 16, 2019

That would be an interesting list to see.