Politics

John Boehner: Steve King Comment About Illegal Immigrants Being Drug Runners "Deeply Offensive and Wrong"

Also issued a written statement earlier this week

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 Calling the comments "deeply offensive and wrong," House Speaker John Boehner on Thursday elevated his criticism of fellow Republican Rep. Steve King over the Congressman's suggestion that many immigrants in the country illegally are drug runners.

Boehner already had issued a written statement earlier in the week condemning King's remarks, but at his weekly news conference, he ramped up his criticism even without being asked. The Ohio Republican took the unusual step of calling King out by name, dramatizing the concern among GOP leaders that incendiary comments from the right can tarnish the party's image even as lawmakers struggle to find a solution to the immigration debate.