Just hours after being directly quoted in the New York Times questioning why terms like “white nationalist” and “white supremacists” are considered “offensive,” Rep. Steve King (R-IA) attempted to clarify his comments: “I am simply a Nationalist,” he said in a statement posted to Twitter.
“Today the New York Times is suggesting that I am an advocate for white nationalism and white supremacy,” he said. “I want to make one thing abundantly clear; I reject those labels and the evil ideology that they define.”
My statement on the New York Times article. pic.twitter.com/IjBHgZYgRD
— Steve King (@SteveKingIA) January 10, 2019
While it appears he’s attempting to combat the Times story, King gave the newspaper a clear quote: “White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization — how did that language become offensive?”
King is hardly a stranger to public uproar over his comments and affiliations with neo-Nazis and other white supremacist-affiliated groups.