Rejection of Steve King’s Endorsement of White Nationalism Slow in Coming from GOP

Rep. Steve King is being widely criticized for his comments in a tweet about “our civilization” being incompatible with “other people’s babies.” King did not make himself popular with many but Republican rejection to King’s appalling comments was slow in coming.

Democrats and Independents, on the other hand, were quick to reject King’s rhetoric.

Democratic Rep. Ted Lieu tweeted,

And Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI) tweeted,

If you are looking at examples of appalled outspoken rejections of King’s words from the GOP, you are looking at the wrong party.

The First Republican to speak out appears to have been Minnesota Rep. Pat Garofalo:

While it was refreshing to see him not compared to the poor misunderstood Neanderthals, judging from all we’ve seen and heard for the past eight years, Garofalo is in a minority thinking so.

A little bit later, Republican Evan McMullin, who ran as an Independent in 2016, revealed in a tweet that he was as aware of anybody of this silence:

Republican Carlos Curbelo (R-FL) asked,

David Duke, to nobody’s surprise, cheered King:

Nazi Richard Spencer, was equally jubilant:

To Spencer, these are “the 15 words”:

They will presumably stand alongside with the white supremacist’s “14 words,” that, “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children.”

Speaking of “the math you do as a Republican,” this shows Karl Rove that when his fellow conservatives bother to do their sums at all, the results are generally not being put to good use.

It also reveals just how deep the rot goes: Republicans who remained silence were showing their agreement with Duke, Spencer, and King, a tacit admission of the new lows to which the Party of Abraham Lincoln has sunk.

America is supposed to be a refuge for people who think a certain way, not a homeland for people who look a certain way. This is the great lesson Republicans have forgotten. And they should be ashamed.

Hrafnkell Haraldsson

Hrafnkell Haraldsson, a social liberal with leanings toward centrist politics has degrees in history and philosophy. His interests include, besides history and philosophy, human rights issues, freedom of choice, religion, and the precarious dichotomy of freedom of speech and intolerance. He brings a slightly different perspective to his writing, being that he is neither a follower of an Abrahamic faith nor an atheist but a polytheist, a modern-day Heathen who follows the customs and traditions of his Norse ancestors. He maintains his own blog, A Heathen’s Day, which deals with Heathen and Pagan matters, and Mos Maiorum Foundation www.mosmaiorum.org, dedicated to ethnic religion. He has also contributed to NewsJunkiePost, GodsOwnParty and Pagan+Politics.