King said that while he was traveling in a military convoy in Iraq, he
gave a friendly wave to the Iraqis who lined the streets, watching the
convoy pass. King said that many of the men responded by giving him a
“thumbs up.” King said at the fair that those thumbs up prove that the
Iraqis support America efforts in their country. King said he even has
a videotape that records these thumbs up.

Iowa Democratic Party Chair Gordon Fischer said, “Perhaps Congressman
King should review his own video again. In Iraq, a thumbs up isn’t a
gesture of support. It’s a nasty insult.”

According to Roger E. Axtell's book Gestures: The Do's and Taboos of Body Language Around the World, a “'thumbs up' traditionally translates as the foulest of Iraqi insults. A gentle translation would be '– y–rs, pal!'”

“While King's misinterpretation is amusing, the gestures of a few
people on the street aren’t the issue, and neither are the ramblings of
Iowa’s most misguided congressman,” Fischer said. “What is important is
that we have dedicated men and women in harm’s way in a dangerous part
of the world, and an occupied foreign land in turmoil. We have a
pResident who went to war without a plan to finish the job, and an Iowa
Congressman who is so far off target and misinformed that it is
difficult to take seriously anything he says about these important
issues.”