Steve King

The Delicate Dance Of Disassociating Oneself From 'White Nationalist' Groups At CPAC

Ryan J. Reilly | February 11, 2012, 8:45AM

Steve King speaks during a CPAC panel on "The Failure of Multiculturalism."

Although much of the attention is on the main stage at each year's Conservative Political Action Conference, it's the side events where the real kookiness occurs. These events can give CPAC organizers and attendees a headache as they try to walk the line between accepting certain groups under the umbrella of the conservative movement, but also trying to make it clear they don't want to associate themselves with some of those groups' more questionable qualities.

Take for instance a session on the dangers of multiculturalism, that included participants from the website VDARE, which has been labeled as a white nationalist hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Rep. Steve King was one of those who had to walk the fine line. When questioned about the Southern Poverty Law Center's description of his fellow panelists he first reacted by going on the offensive. "I wouldn't be sitting up on a panel with anyone from the Southern Poverty Law Center," King told reporters. "I'm not in a position to judge people in the fashion they seem to be so free to do."

However, King then danced a delicate series of mental pirouettes. He explained his respect for VDARE's top dog, Peter Brimelow, while holding back from a full-on embrace. Brimelow, he said, was not someone he'd met before the panel, though he had read his books.

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