Sen. Schumer: House GOP ‘following Steve King over the cliff’ on immigration issue

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) blasted Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) Thursday, saying he is the reason the House has been unable to take up any immigration reform efforts.

“Steve King — a far-right, way out of the mainstream outlier — doesn’t just spew hatred, he calls the shots,” Schumer said. “They’re following Steve King over the cliff.”

{mosads}Schumer said King’s viewpoint is harming the Republican Party’s chances of winning elections.

“Where are the people in the Republican Party with the courage to stand up to Steve King,” Schumer said. “If Republicans continue to kowtow to the hard right on immigration reform, they’ll consign themselves to being the minority party for a decade.”

Schumer said that instead of standing up to King, House Republican leaders have given “him the keys to the kingdom.”

“Steve King is there, in his own words, “manning the watchtowers 24/7” to make sure nothing can be passed to fix our broken immigration system,” Schumer said on the Senate floor. “He’s an extreme outlier on the issue of immigration reform.”

Schumer pointed out that it’s been more than 300 days since the Senate passed its bipartisan immigration reform bill.

“More than 300 days have passed since we in the Senate passed bipartisan legislation,” Schumer said. “But the House has failed to do anything to fix our broken immigration system.”

Schumer brought up some controversial remarks made by King, such as him saying young immigrations crossing the border illegally with drugs have calves the size of “cantaloupes.” He said Republicans must “cringe” when they hear King talk.