Rep. Steve Scalise, the third-ranking House Republican, has not denied a Louisiana blog's allegation that he spoke at a white supremacist forum as a state legislator in 2002, but his aides claim that it is likely he did so without knowing the group's extremist views.
The controversy comes just days before Republicans are set to take full control of Congress, with Scalise poised to play a key role in shepherding through conservatives' legislative priorities, the office of House Majority Whip Scalise (R-La.) confirmed to The Washington Post on Monday.
"It is highly likely he spoke to this group but he doesn't remember it...it was twelve years ago," an aide told NBC News.
The controversial appearance, made at an event for the European-American Unity and Rights Organization, was initially exposed by the Louisiana political blog CenLamar on Sunday after it cited published posts from Stormfront.com, a white supremacist forum created by David Duke, the former Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.
"Throughout his career in public service, Mr. Scalise has spoken to hundreds of different groups with a broad range of viewpoints," Moira Bagley Smith, Scalise's spokeswoman, said in the statement, adding that he has no ties to the "abhorrent group in question."
Scalise had not been aware about the group's white-supremacist leanings, his office told the Post in a statement, which was later emailed to The Hill.
"In every case, he was building support for his policies, not the other way around. In 2002, he made himself available to anyone who wanted to hear his proposal to eliminate slush funds that wasted millions of taxpayer dollars as well as his opposition to a proposed tax increase on middle-class families."
"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," she added.
On Monday, Scalise's alleged appearance at the event drew both support and criticism, according to CNN.
"I know Congressman Scalise to be a good man who is fair-minded and kindhearted. I'm confident he absolutely rejects racism in all its forms," Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said in a statement, adding that he doesn't believe Scalise would agree with the white supremacist group's ideology.
But Scalise's appearance also drew a harsh rebuke from Erick Erickson, the conservative RedState.com blogger and former Louisiana resident who asked of the congressman: "How do you not know? How do you not investigate?"
"How the hell does somebody show up at a David Duke organized event in 2002 and claim ignorance?" Erickson wrote in a post Monday.
Meanwhile the group, characterized as "extremists" by the Southern Poverty Law Center, had been flagged as a hate group in a list compiled by the Anti-Defamation League that year. It is known to regularly post white supremacist and anti-Semitic content.
"Beyond hosting a website, whitecivilrights.com, and staging an occasional conference, EURO is a paper tiger, serving primarily as a vehicle to publicize Duke's writing and sell his books," according to SPLC.
