Trump surrogate defends tweeting cartoon of Clinton in blackface

An African-American pastor who has become a prominent surrogate for Donald Trump defended sharing a cartoon of Hillary Clinton in blackface earlier on Monday, arguing that his tweet was out of “frustration.”

{mosads}“The tweet is a frustration that I have as a black man here in America, and how I see African-Americans in many cases suffering throughout the country,” Pastor Mark Burns said during an interview on MSNBC.

When asked if he stands by the tweet, Burns said that the “satire cartoon drawing” gets across the message that Clinton and Democrats “tap dance for black votes” and will ignore those voters once getting elected.

“The picture is designed to do draw attention to the very fact that Hillary Clinton do pander and her policies are not good for African-Americans,” Burns said. “It’s doing exactly what it’s supposed to do.”

Burns took to Twitter on Monday, sharing a cartoon that showed the Democratic nominee in blackface and wearing a T-shirt that says “No hot sauce, no peace!”

Black Americans, THANK YOU FOR YOUR VOTES and letting me use you again..See you again in 4 years. pic.twitter.com/c4BOc6Tgkt

— Pastor Mark Burns (@pastormarkburns) August 29, 2016

The pastor, who spoke in support of Trump at the Republican National Committee in Cleveland last month, said that he doesn’t speak on behalf of the GOP nominee.

Burn’s comments comes as Trump seeks to widen his appeal with minority voters. During recent rallies, he has asked “what do you have to lose” when courting black and Hispanic voters.