Republicans Slam Rep. King's 'Bizarre' Rape Remarks

Iowa Republican defends abortion ban
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 15, 2019 3:31 AM CDT
Steve King: Rape, Incest Created World's Population
In this Jan. 26, 2019 photo, Rep. Steve King speaks during a town hall meeting in Primghar, Iowa.   (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Rep. Steve King's latest remarks are being called "offensive," "appalling," and "bizarre"—and that's from his fellow Republicans. The Iowa lawmaker, speaking to the Westside Conservative Club in Urbandale Wednesday, argued that most of the world's population is the product of rape and incest somewhere along the line, the Des Moines Register reports. "What if we went back through all the family trees and just pulled out anyone who was a product of rape or incest? Would there be any population of the world left if we did that?" he said. "Considering all the wars and all the rapes and pillages that happened throughout all these different nations, I know that I can't say that I was not a part of a product of that." King was defending abortion laws that make no exceptions for cases of rape or incest.

King's remarks were condemned by Republican leaders, who stripped him of his House committee assignments earlier this year after he defended white nationalism. "These comments are wrong, and offensive, and underscore why we removed him from his committees," House Minority Whip Steve Scalise told Politico. House Republican Conference Chairwoman Liz Cheney said King should resign over the "appalling and bizarre" remarks. King's remarks were also slammed by Democratic candidates including Bernie Sanders, as well as Republican state Sen. Randy Feenstra, who plans to challenge King in the 2020 primary, the BBC reports. "I am 100% pro-life but Steve King's bizarre comments and behavior diminish our message & damage our cause," Feenstra tweeted. (After he was censured by his House colleagues, King compared himself to Jesus.)

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