Sarah Wasko / Media Matters
UPDATE (3/16): CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski and Nathan McDermott reported that Higbie also “shared an N-word laden post written by someone else on Facebook in December 2014.” From their report:
In a December 18, 2014 post, Higbie shared a post that he claimed was written by an 83-year-old black man. The post uses the N-word, uncensored 20 times.
In sharing the post, Higbie wrote, “these are not the words of me, Carl Higbie but that of Williams [sic] G. Lillas.” He called the man's thoughts “straight to the point.”
The independent fact-checking website Snopes has said the post, which Higbie attributed to Lillas, a war veteran, had been shared around the Internet in various iterations and is “probably false.”
[…]
Higbie shared the post when the death of Michael Brown, the teenager who was shot and killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, was in the news. The post refers to Brown by the N-word.
“So, let us be clear, Michael Brown was a nigger; a sorry assed, criminal, hoodlum, nigger. Nobody wants to say that, but I will,” the post said.
The post later says black people repeatedly riot and again uses the N-word.
A spokesperson for America First Policies defended Higbie and complained that CNN is purportedly spewing “falsehoods and propaganda.”
ORIGINAL POST: Carl Higbie resigned in disgrace from his appointed government position a few months ago after he was exposed as a bigot who told radio listeners he disliked black, Muslim, and LGBTQ people, among others. A leading pro-Trump group that works closely with the White House has now hired him as a senior official.
America First Policies announced today that Higbie is joining the group as its director of advocacy. Veteran Republican consultant and America First Policies president Brian O. Walsh said in a statement that Higbie’s “esteemed military leadership and service to our great nation -- along with his extensive experience in advocacy, communications and campaigning for candidates for federal office -- will make him an invaluable addition to the America First team.”
Higbie resigned as the chief of external affairs at the Corporation for National and Community Service in January after CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski unearthed vile remarks Higbie made as a radio host “about black Americans, Muslims, women, LGBT people, veterans suffering from PTSD and immigrants.”
CNN reported that his remarks included claiming that "'the black race’ had ‘lax’ morals”; that “black women think ‘breeding is a form of government employment’”; and “that he did not like Muslims.” Higbie also stated that members of the military with severe PTSD have "'a weak mind' and said 75% of those afflicted were either lying or milking it for federal money.” He remarked: “I don't like gay people. I just don't.” And he “said American citizens with guns should be allowed to go to the border to shoot undocumented immigrants crossing into the US.”
Higbie later apologized for his remarks.
America First Policies was started shortly after President Donald Trump’s inauguration by former top advisers to his campaign. It is affiliated with the super PAC America First Action. Advisers to the group have included former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski, former White House deputy chief of staff Katie Walsh, pundit and former Labor Department official Curtis Ellis, and former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke. Rick Gates, who recently pleaded “guilty to federal conspiracy and false statements,” briefly worked with the group “but was pushed out of that job last year,” as The Associated Press noted.
America First Policies is heavily involved with the Trump White House and his agenda. In recent weeks, Vice President Mike Pence has spoken at the organization's events in Kentucky, Michigan, and Ohio, among others.