New York Republican Rep. Mike Lawler reiterated his criticism of President Donald Trump on Sunday after apost from Trumplast week included a racist animation of former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama depicted as apes.
"I think sometimes in our public discourse it is best to just say, 'I'm sorry,'" Lawler told ABC News' "This Week" co-anchor Jonathan Karl.
Lawler, who was one of the first Republicans to criticize Trump over the post on Friday, said that he is taking the White House at its word that the post was a "mistake" made by a staffer. Lawler added that whoever originally created the meme "is an idiot."
Lawler said he is taking the White House at its word that the post was a "mistake" made by a staffer. He said whoever originally created the meme "is an idiot."
'Indefensible': Black Trump allies grapple with fallout from racist video of Obamas
Asked on Friday if he would apologize for the video, Trump told reporters he would not.
"No, I didn't make a mistake. I mean, I look at a lot of -- thousands of things," Trump said. "And I looked at the beginning of it, it was fine."
Asked if he condemned the racist portion of the video, Trump said, "Of course I do."
Trump's post included claims of debunked 2020 election conspiracies before the Obamas' faces appear near the end on the bodies of apes abruptly and briefly without explanation with the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" playing over it. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt initially blasted criticism of the video as "fake outrage" before the White House later blamed it on a staffer and deleted the post about 12 hours after it went online.
GOP Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, one of Trump's staunchest allies, was the first prominent Republican to call out the president, calling the post "the most racist thing I've seen out of this White House."
"I think Tim Scott obviously was one of the first people to speak out. I don't think he was engaged in fake outrage," Lawler said.
"I think the vast majority of Americans recognize that that type of imagery, and trying to, you know, compare, the first Black president to a gorilla or a monkey, is insensitive, it's offensive, it's racist," Lawler said.
He added, "Whether it was intentional or a mistake, the fact is it's wrong. And we should all just be able to acknowledge that and move forward."
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
