(Radio Iowa) — Republican Congressman Steve King took to the floor of the U.S. House today (Friday) to respond to a New York Times story in which he’s quoted talking about the terms white nationalist, white supremacy and western civilization. King, a Republican from the western Iowa community of Kiron, says he is an “AMERICAN Nationalist” and rejects the ideology of white supremacy and white nationalism.

King says he “made a freshman mistake” in talking to the New York Times.

The newpaper quoted King asking rhetorically why the terms white nationalism, white supremacy and western civilization had developed negative connotations. King today (Friday) said on the House floor that he is an advocate for the values of western civilization.

King says he is an advocate for the values of western civilization. The top three Republican in the U.S. House have denounced King in the past 24 hours. Republican Tim Scott, an African American who represents South Carolina in the U.S Senate, says “silence is no longer acceptable” when it comes to the things King says. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush is urging Republicans to “actively support” King’s primary opponent, Republican State Senator Randy Feenstra. Iowa G-O-P chairman Jeff Kaufmann has called Feenstra a “legitimate” challenger, but Kaufmann says the party will be neutral in the race.

Kaufmann says he wants to make it clear there are some phrases that do not represent “the American spirit” and Kaufmann puts “white supremacy” in that category.

Iowa DEMOCRATIC Party chairman Troy Price says King is an embarrassment to the state of Iowa.

Feenstra, the state senator who’s stepped forward to challenge King, is using the hashtag “retire Steve King” on twitter and this (Friday) afternoon Feenstra tweeted a link to a National Review opinion piece. It was titled “Steve King’s Bigotry Is the Antithesis of American Ideals.”