"(Obama's Aunt) Ms. Onyango has made herself a public figure and should have no hesitation about appearing before the Subcommittee..."

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Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) called Monday for Obama's aunt, Zeituni Onyango, to appear as the Republican witness in a House subcommittee hearing on the circumstances of her successful battle for asylum.

"I am concerned about the public perception that favoritism played a role in the grant of asylum to Ms. Onyango," King wrote in a letter to Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), Chair of the Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security and International Law. "In order to better determine whether favoritism played a role - especially because Ms. Onyango had been earlier turned down for asylum and ordered deported in 2004 before her nephew became president - the Subcommittee needs to hear from Ms. Onyango herself. Therefore, I will invite her as the Republican witness on the second panel at Thursday's hearing."

Though King says in the letter that he is aware of the confidential nature of asylum cases, he argues that "Ms. Onyango has made herself a public figure and should have no hesitation about appearing before the Subcommittee," because her attorney, Margaret Wong, has been open with the press.

In May, King expressed skepticism about the decision to grant asylum to Onyango, alleging that "favoritism or judicial bias" may have played a part in the eventual reversal of a previous ruling against her.

The Subcommittee Hearing is scheduled to take place this Thursday at 10:00 AM.