While many conservatives are actually joining in the outrage at the New York grand jury’s decision not to indict the cop who killed Eric Garner, leave it to Rep. Peter King (R-NY) to begin the victim blaming.
According to King, had it not been for Garner’s weight, the man would have survived. He’s basically insisting that Garner’s death is his own fault just because he was a little heavy. “If he had not had asthma, and a heart condition and was so obese, almost definitely he would not have died from this,” said King.
King is a rotten, Republican politician, not a doctor. And he joins the other group of politicians who speak on issues of which they know nothing, as many chime in on Net Neutrality and climate change. King continued his assessment of Garner’s health backed with below-rudimentary medical knowledge.
“The fact is if you can’t breathe, you can’t talk,” said King. “If you’ve ever seen anyone resisting arrest, I’ve seen it, and it’s been white guys, and they’re always saying, ‘You’re breaking my arm, you’re choking me, you’re doing this,’ police hear the all the time.”
Like with the killing of Michael Brown, there is a racial subtext in the Eric Garner narrative. King brings up the issue of race, saying that there “was not a hint” of racism featured in the video of Garner’s attack. Although true, there isn’t much to go on when considering any racial motivations, possibly; however, the officer still killed a man. The New York Medical Examiners office even ruled Garner’s death as a homicide at the hands of the officer.
The point of whether there were any racial motivations or not is moot. The fact remains the same that this officer committed homicide. The racial narrative is subject to debate, but his weight or any other health issue do not matter in this case. He was killed, plain and simple, and Peter Kind needn’t be so quick to relieve the officer of any wrongdoing.