McCarthy says “action will be taken” against Steve King for white supremacy comment – By Holly Rosenkrantz (cbsnews.com) / Jan 13 2019
The top Republican in the House said Sunday that “action will be taken” against Rep. Steve King for comments the Iowa Republican made last week defending white nationalism and white supremacy.
“That language has no place in America. That is not the America I know, and it’s most definitely not the party of Lincoln,” House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California told “Face the Nation,” saying he has a meeting with King scheduled for Monday.
“Action will be taken. I’m having a serious conversation with Congressman Steve King about his future and role in this Republican Party,” McCarthy said. “I will not stand back as a leader of this party, believing in this nation, that all are created equal, that that stands or continues to stand and have any role with us.”
McCarthy is the latest high-profile Republican to to criticize King for suggesting in a New York Times interview on Thursday that white nationalism and white supremacism are not offensive terms.
“White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive?” King asked. “Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization?” He later released a statement saying, “I reject those labels and the evil ideology” represented by those terms, adding he is “simply a Nationalist.”
King’s comments drew condemnation from top Republican officials and calls to strip King of committee assignments or officially censure him in the House. Following his interview Sunday, McCarthy told “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan he is reviewing whether King should keep his committee assignments.
McCarthy also on Sunday dismissed a report in The Washington Post that President Trump has concealed details of his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He said the president is “more than willing” to let information “get out” about his meetings with Putin, but the overall goal is to build a personal relationship with world leaders.
“I want to this president to be able to build the relationship, even on a personal level,” he said.
In addition, McCarthy continued to blame Democrats for the partial government shutdown that is now the longest federal closure in U.S. history. Democratic lawmakers are rejecting Mr. Trump’s demands to include $5.7 billion for a border wall in a spending bill.
“We should solve this legislatively,” McCarthy said, declining to endorse a push to declare a national emergency to fund the border all that Mr. Trump wants.
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