Iowa governor Reynolds disagrees with congressman King's diversity comments

DES MOINES — Gov. Kim Reynolds said Tuesday she 'completely' disagrees with U.S. Rep. Steve King on comments he made recently about diversity, but she plans to keep him as a co-chairman of her 2018 gubernatorial campaign while staying focused on the issues Iowans see important to the state's future.

King, a Kiron Republican who serves as Iowa's 4th District congressman, drew criticism last week when he twice declared that diversity is not an American strength and endorsed a European leader's view that 'mixing cultures' leads to a lower quality of life.

In a tweet, King linked to a Voice of Europe story that quoted Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban as saying, 'Mixing cultures will not lead to a higher quality of life but a lower one.' King, a conservative Republican and leading critic of U.S. immigration policies, followed with a second tweet, 'Assimilation has become a dirty word to the multiculturalist Left. Assimilation, not diversity, is our American strength.'

Diversity is not our strength. Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban, 'Mixing cultures will not lead to a higher quality of life but a lower one.' December 8, 2017

Diversity is not our strength. Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban, 'Mixing cultures will not lead to a higher quality of life but a lower one.' https://t.co/ZlMXzcc87w

— Steve King (@SteveKingIA)

Assimilation has become a dirty word to the multiculturalist Left. Assimilation, not diversity, is our American strength.December 8, 2017

Assimilation has become a dirty word to the multiculturalist Left. Assimilation, not diversity, is our American strength.

— Steve King (@SteveKingIA)

On Tuesday, Reynolds distanced herself from King's remarks, telling Statehouse reporters during her weekly news conference: 'I'm not going to get involved in the Twitter war, I'm not going to participate in that.'

Reynolds said she has a number of statewide and county co-chairs associated with her 2018 election bid, and she is certain she does not agree with them on every topic.

'I'm not going to agree with everything that they have to say and I can certainly make it known when I don't agree with a comment that they make. But I also want to be able to work with them on really important issues for Iowa,' Reynolds said in response to questions about King's social media posts.

'I strongly, strongly disagree with that statement. I don't believe that that's reflective of Iowans, I don't believe that that is reflective of Iowa values. I believe that diversity has made this state and this country stronger, and so I completely disagree with what he said,' the governor told reporters.

But instead of focusing on divisive issues, Reynolds told reporters, 'we need to focus on what we need to focus on and we need to make sure that we get tax reform done at the federal level so we can create a simpler, fairer tax environment that inspires and doesn't inhibit growth — that's what I'm focused on.'

King, who represents 39 counties in northwest and north-central Iowa, was first elected to the U.S. House in 2002. One Republican, four Democrats and one Libertarian have announced plans to challenge him in the 2018 election.

Reynolds, who became governor last May when Terry Branstad vacated the post to become U.S. ambassador to China, faces challenges from two Republicans and a number of Democratic, independent and third-party challengers as she gears up for her first statewide bid as a gubernatorial candidate in 2018.

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