Hoyer reserves judgment on Scalise

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) declined Tuesday to weigh in on the controversy surrounding Majority Whip Steve Scalise, saying he first wants to learn more about what the Louisiana Republican told a white supremacist group more than a decade ago. 

“I don’t have as many facts as I would like to have on this in terms of the group … nor am I fully apprised of what Mr. Scalise said to the group,” Hoyer told reporters during a press briefing in the Capitol. “And before I find that out I want to reserve judgment.”

{mosads}The comments highlight the cautious approach the Democrats have adopted following the news that Scalise, as a state lawmaker in 2002, spoke to the European-American Unity and Rights Organization, a group founded by former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.

The Democrats’ campaign arm, which was quick to hammer Scalise’s decision “to cheerlead … for neo-Nazis,” has since launched a push linking vulnerable Republicans to the embattled majority whip.

But party leaders have been much more careful, with the office of House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) calling Scalise’s speech “deeply troubling” but stopping short of calling for him to resign his leadership post.

The subdued reaction from Democrats has led some political experts to surmise that party leaders would prefer to have Scalise keep his post, thereby keeping the controversy alive ahead of the 2016 elections, when the political winds would appear to be more favorable for the Democrats after a bruising mid-term cycle.

Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), meanwhile, are supporting Scalise to remain as whip.

“Congressman Scalise acknowledged he made a mistake and has condemned the views that organization espouses,” McCarthy said in a statement. “I’ve known him as a friend for many years and I know that he does not share the beliefs of that organization.”

Hoyer on Tuesday said the Scalise controversy won’t affect his relationship with Republican leaders heading into the 114th Congress.

“I’ve been working most closely with Mr. Boehner and Mr. McCarthy,” Hoyer  said. “I don’t think that will change.”