GOP Rep Mike Lawler denounces Trump's 'insensitive' and 'racist' Obama animation

WASHINGTON, DC: Rep Mike Lawler on Sunday, February 8, renewed his criticism of President Donald Trump following the circulation of a social media post that included racist imagery depicting former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

Speaking on ABC News’ 'This Week', Lawler said that the controversy should have been met with a simple apology.

“I think sometimes in our public discourse it is best to just say, ‘I’m sorry,’” Lawler told co-anchor Jonathan Karl. Lawler was among the first Republicans to publicly condemn the post after it surfaced last week.

White House blames staffer as Trump rejects calls to apologize

Lawler said that he was taking the White House at its word that the post was mistakenly shared by a staffer, but did not mince words about its origin. 

“Whoever originally created the meme is an idiot,” he said.

Trump, however, rejected calls to apologize. Asked on Friday whether he would say sorry for the video, the president said he would not. 

“No, I didn’t make a mistake,” Trump told reporters. “I looked at the beginning of it, it was fine.” When pressed on whether he condemned the racist imagery, Trump replied, “Of course I do.”

Video sparks outrage across party lines

The post featured debunked conspiracy theories about the 2020 election before briefly showing the Obamas’ faces on the bodies of apes near the end, set to the song "The Lion Sleeps Tonight."

The White House initially dismissed the criticism as “fake outrage,” according to Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, before later deleting the post roughly 12 hours after it appeared online and attributing it to a staffer’s mistake.

Sen Tim Scott (R-SC), one of Trump’s closest allies, was the first prominent Republican to denounce the video, calling it “the most racist thing I’ve seen out of this White House.”

Lawler defended Scott’s response. “I don’t think he was engaged in fake outrage,” he said.

Lawler condemns gorilla imagery as 'insensitive' and 'offensive'

Lawler said that most Americans would recognize the imagery as deeply offensive. “Trying to compare the former president to a gorilla or a monkey is insensitive, it’s offensive, it’s racist,” he said.

He added that intent ultimately did not matter. “Whether it was intentional or a mistake, the fact is it’s wrong,” Lawler said. “And we should all just be able to acknowledge that and move forward,” he added. 

Meanwhile, Democrats blasted Trump and the White House for the video. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries delivered a furious and unusually blunt rebuke of the president.

“F**k Donald Trump and his vile, racist and malignant behavior,” Jeffries said, calling the video “disgusting” and dismissing White House explanations as spin.

The Democratic leader said that the imagery was deliberate and reflected a deeper pattern rather than a mistake.