Omar was making reference to King's comment during a Politico interview where he said, "there are too many mosques in this country," back in 2007. He continued to say, "I think there has been a lack of full cooperation from too many people in the Muslim community." He later said that his comments were taken out of context saying, "My position in this interview, as it has been for many years, is that too many mosques in this country do not cooperate with law enforcement. Unfortunately, Politico was incapable of making this distinction.”On Monday morning King released a statement on Facebook saying, “After 28 years of spending 4 days a week in Washington, D.C., it is time to end the weekly commute and be home in Seaford."He continued, "This was not an easy decision. But there is a season for everything and Rosemary and I decided that, especially since we are both in good health, it is time to have the flexibility to spend more time with our children and grandchildren."The 75-year-old New York native currently serves on two committees - the House Homeland Security and Financial Services committees. From 2005 to 2006 and again from 2011 to 2012 he served as the chairman for the Homeland Security Committee.King is not the first Republican politician to announce he will not seek re-election in 2020 which suggests Republicans have little faith in winning the House back as it is currently controlled by the Democrats.Democrat Jackie Gordon is now the front runner for New York's second district. She tweeted on Monday, thanking King for his years of service."Despite our disagreements, I thank @RepPeteKing for his 26 years of service representing our district in Congress. I respect his decision to retire."Peter King is an Islamophobe who held McCarthyite hearings targeting American Muslims, said “there are too many mosques in this country” and blamed Eric Garner for his own death at the hands of police. Good riddance. https://t.co/cYZOrnaK2M
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) November 11, 2019
Despite our disagreements, I thank @RepPeteKing for his 26 years of service representing our district in Congress. I respect his decision to retire.
— Jackie Gordon (@VoteJackie4NY) November 11, 2019