Louisiana rep calls Steve King a ‘white supremacist’ after Katrina comment

Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.) called Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) a “white supremacist” after King contrasted how the people of New Orleans reacted to Hurricane Katrina with how the people of Iowa are reacting to flooding. 

“My heart goes out to all Iowans. Though it unsettles me that @SteveKingIA would dare compare them to the countless victims of Katrina, many of whom lost their lives,” Richmond, who represents a large portion of New Orleans, tweeted Friday. 

“When people show you who they are, believe them. Steve King is a white supremacist and I won’t stand for it,” he added. 

My heart goes out to all Iowans. Though it unsettles me that @SteveKingIA would dare compare them to the countless victims of Katrina, many of whom lost their lives. When people show you who they are, believe them. Steve King is a white supremacist and I won’t stand for it.

— Rep Cedric Richmond (@RepRichmond) March 22, 2019

King at a Thursday town hall said the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) told him that the people of New Orleans asked for help, while the people of Iowa helped each other. 

“Here’s what FEMA tells me: We go to a place like New Orleans and everybody’s looking around saying, ‘Who’s gonna help me?’” King said, according to a video posted to his Facebook page. 

He said that FEMA told him that a person from Iowa would say, “Wait a minute, let me get my boots, it’s Joe that needs help. Let’s go down to his place and help him.”

King recently created controversy when he questioned how the terms “white supremacist” and “white nationalist” became offensive in a New York Times interview. The House passed a resolution condemning white supremacy following his remarks, and he was stripped of his committee assignments. 

The Hill has reached out to King’s office for comment. 

Iowa is one of several states in the Midwest that is facing severe flooding. 

Hurricane Katrina decimated the Gulf Coast in 2005, killing more than 1,200 people.