GOP Rep. Steve King, losing donors left and right, retains the support of Ted Cruz

Ted Cruz and Steve King.
(Image credit: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)

Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) lost Land O'Lakes, Purina, and Intel Corp., but he's still got Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas).

In the wake of the mass murder of 11 congregants at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday, there has been renewed attention to white nationalist statements King has made, like "we can't restore our civilization with somebody else's babies." Several companies said they will no longer make any political contributions to King, who has also retweeted neo-Nazis, and he was denounced by National Republican Congressional Committee chairman Rep. Steve Stivers (R-Ohio). "We must stand up against white supremacy and hate in all forms, and I strongly condemn this behavior," Stivers said Tuesday.

King told Bloomberg News on Wednesday that in the midst of all this, Cruz called him and offered his support. During the 2016 Republican primaries, King backed Cruz, and was co-chair of his Iowa campaign. Cruz's campaign spokeswoman said he did make a "personal call" to King, and he reiterated what he told reporters in Texas earlier in the day — that King's comments have been "disappointing" and he's "saying and doing things that are dividing us, that are pulling us apart." Cruz's campaign did not outright condemn King's statements or actions.

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King was adamant with Bloomberg that his re-election is not in trouble, scoffing at a poll that has him just 1 point ahead of his Democratic challenger, J.D. Scholten, saying he has an internal poll giving him an 18-point advantage. He applauded President Trump for saying he'll do away with birthright citizenship, and said he has the power to do so, despite constitutional experts saying no. King directed much of his ire at Stivers, saying he didn't give any examples of racist things he said. "If you attack someone and you don't cite anything, you're just a cannibal," King said. "That's all you are." He also warned that certain scores "can be settled after the election."

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.