BISMARCK - The head of the North Dakota education and public employee union apologized Monday, Jan. 15, after calling President Donald Trump a “liar” and “racist” on Twitter over the weekend.
Nick Archuleta, president of North Dakota United, posted the message on the social media site Saturday morning before deleting it.
“You are a liar, a racist, and an embarrassment to our Nation, sir,” the tweet to Trump said.
A spokesman for North Dakota United said Archuleta wasn’t doing interviews on the subject but shared a statement in which he apologized for his “inconsiderate remarks.”
“I know that name-calling is wrong, and I regret that on occasion, I allowed my emotions to override the standards I set for myself,” Archuleta said in the statement. “Going forward, I will redouble my efforts to maintain civility in all my communications.”
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The tweet came amid reports that Trump used an expletive to deride Haiti, El Salvador and African countries during a meeting on immigration with lawmakers in the Oval Office last week, sparking fierce backlash. The president on Sunday said he’s not racist and denied that he made the comments.
Archuleta has been critical of Trump and other officials before on Twitter, which happens to be the Republican president’s preferred medium for launching insults of his own. Last year, Archuleta said Trump is “a fool” and appeared to suggest Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is incompetent, among other tweets.
State Republican Party Chairman Kelly Armstrong, a state senator from Dickinson, said he likes Archuleta personally and was glad he apologized, but said “it’s pretty clear that the leadership at North Dakota United is very partisan, and I guess it’s up to their members to decide if they’re OK with that.”
North Dakota United has 11,000 members that include K-12 teachers and higher education faculty and staff, along with state, county and municipal employees, according to its website.
