La. Republican Mentioned in White Supremacist Message Board
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WASHINGTON -- House Majority Whip Republican Rep. Steve Scalise spoke at a white supremacist conference in 2002, according to postings on a message board at that time that were discovered by a Louisiana blogger this month. The event was organized by famed KKK leader David Duke, who at the time had made a failed bid for governor, but remained a prominent politician in the state of Louisiana.
Scalises office didnt respond to multiple requests for comments about the speech. A spokesman for the Louisiana congressmantold POLITICO that they did not know whether he had addressed the group.
He has never been affiliated with the abhorrent group in question, his office told POLITICO. The hate-fueled ignorance and intolerance that group projects is in stark contradiction to what Mr. Scalise believes and practices as a father, a husband, and a devoted Catholic.
A user on a message forum called Stormfront, which describes itself as a White Pride World Wide, posted in 2002 that Scalise had been a speaker at a conference of the European-American Unity and Rights Organization. The Southern Poverty Law Center named the organization a hate group. The group was founded by Duke, the former Louisiana congressman who was known for trying to transform the KKK from an organization known for white robes and hoods to one where the members wore ties and ran for office. Requests to Duketo confirm whether Scalise spoke through his website were not answered.
The user, who posted under the name Alsace Hebert wrote that Scalise, then a state representative in Louisiana, had addressed the conference. The poster, "Alsace Hebert," wrote thousands of posts on the message board.
The meeting was productive locally as State Representative, Steve Scalise, discussed ways to oversee gross mismanagement of tax revenue or slush funds that have little or no accountability, the user wrote in an entry dated May 21, 2002. Representative Scalise brought into sharp focus the dire circumstances pervasive in many important, under-funded needs of the community at the expense of graft within the Housing and Urban Development Fund, an apparent give-away to a selective group based on race.
The message board has archives dating back to 2001 and is still in use today. The same user, who has not posted on the site since 2009, wrote in another post on Feb. 2, 2004 that he would be encouraged to see Scalise run for Congress.
It was just announced that Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, will enter the race in the 1st Congressional District, the post stated. Those that attended the EURO conference in New Orleans will recall that Scalise was a speaker, offering his support for issues that are of concern to us.
The conference was held at a hotel in Metairie, La., which is part of Scalise's district. Organizers and attendees on the Stormfront message board described it as an opportunity to discuss issues that are facing pro-white groups.
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La. Republican Mentioned in White Supremacist Message Board