This Republican Blamed Obesity for Eric Garner’s Death

Rep. Peter King has said some dumb things in the past, so who do you go to if you want to hear dumb things about the Eric Garner murder? You go to Peter King of course.

After the grand jury decided not to indict any of the police officers involved in Garner’s murder, Peter King went on CNN and praised the officers for a job will done, and at the same time, the Republican managed to cast blame on the victim for the victim’s death.

“You had a 350-pound person who was resisting arrest. The police were trying to bring him down as quickly as possible,” King said in an appearance on CNN’s “The Situation Room.” “If he had not had asthma and a heart condition and was so obese, almost definitely he would not have died from this. The police had no reason to know he was in serious condition.”

The confrontation between Pantaleo and Garner was also caught on video that showed Garner repeatedly telling the officer he couldn’t breathe. King said police hear that kind of thing all the time.

“But if you can’t breathe, you can’t talk,” he argued.

The Long Island congressman also dismissed the idea that any racial animus played into Garner’s death.

“I have no doubt, if that were a 350-pound white guy, he would have been treated the same,” King told CNN.

Earlier Wednesday, the congressman tweeted his thanks to the grand jury for not indicting Pantaleo.