Religious Right Leaders Defend Steve King’s Honor, Demand Apology from House GOP Leader McCarthy

Religious Right leaders and right-wing activists are rallying in support of embattled Rep. Steve King, who has been under fire since a New York Times story quoted him wondering when terms like "white nationalist," "white supremacist," and "Western civilization" became offensive. His comment served to highlight his long history of unabashed racism and has resulted in King being stripped of his committee assignments, as well as a wave of calls for his resignation.

Amid this controversy, Religious Right leaders are voicing their support for King, thanks to an effort organized by radical right-wing activist Janet Porter. King is a close ally of Porter's and even introduced a federal version of her "Heartbeat Bill" in Congress in 2017 that aimed to outlaw abortion, in Porter's words, "before the mother even knows she’s pregnant."

Porter is currently gathering signatures for a letter in support of King that will be sent to House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, urging him to issue an apology to King and reinstate his committee assignments. King and right-wing activist Ed Martin, one of the signers, slammed McCarthy earlier this week for not defending King.

Among those who have already added their names to this letter of support are James Dobson, Tom DeLay, Rick Scarborough, Matt Barber, Sandy Rios, Stephen Strang, Frank Gaffney, Lance Wallnau, Jim Garlow, Brian Camenker, Larry Pratt, Scott Lively, Peter LaBarbera, Gordon Klingenschmitt, and dozens more:

Dear Leader McCarthy,

We are appalled that Republican leadership would choose to believe a liberal news organization famous for their bias over an outstanding member of Congress who has served the people of Iowa and the United States honorably and faithfully for 16 years.

If Congressman Steve King believed and stood by the outrageous misquote of the New York Times, then the actions taken against him would have been warranted, but the opposite is true.

Unlike North Korea, we in the United States are "innocent until proven guilty" and hold to the principles of Western Civilization, as Rep. King so admirably does. The foundational principle begins with the self-evident truth that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." These are the principles to which Rep. King was referring and which he has championed for more than two decades of public service.

Don't make the fatal mistake of turning the reins of the U.S. Congress over to the liberal media, allowing them to target, misquote, and falsely brand any member of Congress they wish to remove.

We call on you to do the right thing as Minority Leader: issue a public apology and reinstate Rep. King to his committee assignments. If we don't stand with this good man against the media-manufactured assault today, none of us will be safe from it tomorrow.

Tom DeLay
Former Majority Leader
United States House of Representatives

Dr. James Dobson

Janet L. Porter
President & Founder
Faith2Action

Dr. Rick Scarborough
Founder
Vision America

Dick Bott
Founder, Bott Radio Network

Andy Schlafly
Phyllis Schlafly Eagles

Troy Newman
Operation Rescue

Matt Barber
Co-Founder and General Counsel
Christian Civil Rights Watch

Stephen Strang
CEO
Charisma Media

Pastor Paul Blair
President
Reclaiming America for Christ

Lance Wallnau
CEO Lance Learning Group

Rena Lindevaldsen
Professor
Liberty University School of Law

Dr. Jim Garlow
Rosemary Schindler Garlow
International Pro-Family Leader

Pastor Stephen E. Broden
Black Pro-Life Coalition
President
Protect Life and Marriage

Mary Drabik
President
South Florida Bible College

Sandy Rios
Director of Governmental Affairs
American Family Association

Steven F. Hotze, M.D.
Conservative Republicans of Texas

John R. Diggs, Jr., M.D.
National Conservative Leader

Cynthia Dunbar
National Committeewoman
RNC

Rabbi Noson Shmuel Leiter,
Executive Director
Help Rescue Our Children

Father Stephen Imbarrato
LifeMinistriesUS

Frank Gaffney
Founder and President
Center for Security Policy

Bill Johnson
President
American Decency Association

James Michael Francis Komaniecki
President, CEO
Restore American Liberty

Chaplain Gordon Klingenschmitt, PhD
Pray in Jesus Name Ministries
Nationally Syndicated PIJN NEWS
(in 54 million homes)

Ed Martin
President
Phyllis Schlafly's Eagles

Beni Johnson
Bethel, Redding, CA

Bill Federer
Best Selling Author,
National Speaker

Joe Shrewsbury
The Obadiah Fellowship
(704) 281-6017

Pastor Rodney Lord
Sr. Pastor Freedom Gate Church
Marietta, Ohio

Randall Murphree,
American Family Association Journal

Larry Pratt
National Conservative Leader

Pastor Kevin Folger
Cleveland Baptist Church

Rachelle Heidlebaugh
Witness

Scott Lively
President
Scott Lively Ministries

Brian Camenker
President
Mass Resistance

Art Ally
President, The Timothy Plan

Lori Viars
Chairman Warren County
Republican Party Central Committee

Pastor Ernie Sanders
What's Right What's Left
Radio Ministry (12 million)

Golda Ross
Morningstar

Willem McAndrews
Obadiah Fellowship

Ann C. Eubank
Alabama Legislative Wachdogs

Caleb Moore
President
Conservative States of America PAC

Mauren Hendricks
Intercessors of South Carolina

Cathy Martin
Fort Mill, Republicans
South Carolina
Thom Smith
President
Early Light Fund

Peter Han
LA House of Prayer

Pastor Mark Valenti
People's Baptist Church

Lisa Pannett
The Sanity Project

Jim Walchle
Films4Flyovers, Inc.

Marian DuVall
Freedom Gate Church

Steve Baer
Former President
United Republican Fund of Illinois

Ron Feathers
Washington County
Ohio Commissioner

Mike Foreman
Pastor Rejoicing Life Church

Stacy Lynn Harp
Bible News Radio

Twanna Aman
Executive Director
Broward County Right to Life

Scott Ross
President
Healed by Love

Amy Contrada
Research Director, Mass Resistance

Pastor Justin Perry
MorningStar Fellowship Church

Pastor Dean
The Life Center

Tom Trento
President & Founder
The United West

Craig Bergman
President
Fair Taxation for America

Bonnie Jones
Bonnie Jones Ministries

July Busby
President and Founder
Malachi

Stephanie Cartin
Global Intercessors

Mark Gurley
Director
Michigan Oak Initiative

Pastor Jeff and Mary Jane Kolodziej
Founders
Psalmist Global

Jason Jones
President
Movie to Movement

Rev. Bill Niesmith
Founder & President
Harvest Light Ministries

Glenn Newman
Past President Ohio Liberty Coalition
Founder Marietta OH 9-12 Project
Founder GOV Connector

Monica Rylski
Turn Around Toys

Kayla Moore
President
Foundation for Moral Law

Peter LaBarbera
President and Founder
Americans for Truth

Judd Saul
Vice President
Patriots for Christ

Melanie Moore
Director
Ashland Pregnancy Care Center

Monica Rylski
Turn Around Toys

Rich Swingle
Actor, International Speaker

Jeremy Salupo
President & Founder
Elevate

Larry Cirignano
40 Days for Life
Capitol Hill

Dr. Joel Brind
Co-founder Breast Cancer Prevention Institute
Natural Food Science, LLC.
Gregory Quinlan
President
The Center for Garden State Families

Bobby Radeck
Former State Director
Concerned Women for America of Ohio

V. Rev. Dr. Mark Hodges
Saint Stephen Orthodox Church,
The Orthodox Church in America

Pastor Mark Able
Senior Pastor
Southview Grace Brethren Church

Tom Trento
President & Founder
The United West

Martin Angell
A Choice for Every Child Foundation