Rep. Steve King Blows Up over his Justification of IRS Attack

Confronted by a Thinkprogress Blogger today over his rationization and justification of the Suicide Plane Attack by Joseph Stack against the IRS - Rep. Steve King blows his top.



Here's the transcript of what Rep King say when confronted with this...

TP: Do you think this attack, this terrorist attack, was motivated at all by a lot of the anti-tax rhetoric that’s popular in America right now?

KING: I think if we’d abolished the IRS back when I first advocated it, he wouldn’t have a target for his airplane. And I’m still for abolishing the IRS, I’ve been for it for thirty years and I’m for a national sales tax. [...] It’s sad the incident in Texas happened, but by the same token, it’s an agency that is unnecessary and when the day comes when that is over and we abolish the IRS, it’s going to be a happy day for America.

TP: So some of his grievances were legitimate?

KING: I don’t know if his grievances were legitimate, I’ve read part of the material. I can tell you I’ve been audited by the IRS and I’ve had the sense of ‘why is the IRS in my kitchen.’ Why do they have their thumb in the middle of my back. ... It is intrusive and we can do a better job without them entirely.

When asked directly if he thought the anti-tax rhetoric of groups like the Tea Party were responsible for the attack - he essentially said they were, and that the IRS needs to be abolished, clearly justifying the attack against them.

That's what he said, there's no denying it. His first thought at the time wasn't to be concerned with IRS workers and the lives which were at risk - it's was his own political anti-Tax Agenda!

Now he was confronted with his own words and his response was this...

TP: It is tax day and you justified the murder of American federal employees at CPAC.

KING: Are you accusing me of that? Are you accusing me of that? Turn that camera off. I’m not going to have those allegations. You accuse me of murder. That is despicable behavior.

TP: I’m sorry — I did not say that, I did not say that.

KING: That is despicable behavior for any American on this earth to do such a thing.

TP: The camera is off –

KING: We are done.

He didn't accuse you of murder Congressman King, he simply quoted paraphrased you, and he did so accurately fairly. (ed. King had a perfect chance, both times - to make the distinction that he didn't like the IRS but wasn't endorsing murder - he didn't) You had a chance to denounce a murderer, you had a chance to make a statement against violence - you chose instead to come up with reasons for why that violence might be JUSTIFIED. Period. End of Story.

Y'know what's "despicable" Congressman King?

You are.

Vyan

Join the Democratic Non-Violence Project - where starting on Waco/Oklahoma City Day (April 19th) we put the question to members of Congress, do you unequivocally oppose All Forms of Domestic Political Violence or do you feel like Steve King that the IRS had it coming?

And for the Record:

Washington D.C.
1131 Longworth Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: 202.225.4426
Fax: 202.225.3193
http://steveking.house.gov /