Iowa Rep. Steve King, who recently lost his House committee assignments amid bipartisan outrage over comments about white supremacy, was back at it Wednesday, telling a group of conservatives that "rape" and "incest" may have saved humanity from extinction.
"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?" the controversial Republican said during a breakfast speech at the Westside Conservative Club in Urbandale, Iowa.
"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."
As first reported by the Des Moines Register, King made the statement while elaborating on his hard-line belief that there should be no exceptions for rape or incest in legislation he has tried to pass through Congress that would outlaw abortions.
"It's not the baby's fault for the sin of the father, or of the mother," King said in Urbandale.
King's peculiar comments prompted seething backlash.
"Our congressman continues to push his selfish agenda above the needs of Iowa's 4th District _ this time he excuses violence," tweeted J.D. Scholten, a Democrat who unsuccessfully challenged King in the 2018 midterms and is mounting a second bid next year. "This isn't what we stand for."
Presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke also unloaded on King.
"No matter where you live, you know there's no place for Steve King's racism, bigotry and hatred in Congress," O'Rourke tweeted.
A spokeswoman for King did not return a request for comment on whether the Iowa congressman considers himself pro-rape.
King, 70, considered one of the most conservative members of Congress, is no stranger to controversy.
In a rare move in January, Republican House leadership voted to strip King of his positions on the Judiciary, Agriculture and Small Business Committees after he questioned in an interview why phrases like "white supremacist" and "white nationalist" were considered "offensive."
Around the same time, the full House passed a "disapproval resolution" condemning King's remarks while rejecting white nationalism and white supremacy as "hateful expressions of intolerance that are contradictory to the values that define the people of the United States."
