Carl Higbie, Trump Appointee Of Federal Agency, Resigns Over Racist, Homophobic Remarks

Trump administration appointee Carl Higbie resigned Thursday as chief of external affairs of the federal agency Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), after an investigation revealed he had a history of making racist, sexist, xenophobic, and homophobic comments.

Higbie, a former Navy SEAL and a surrogate for Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign, was found to have made several racist and inflammatory remarks during his time as the host of the radio program "Sound of Freedom," on Internet talk radio several years ago. The comments were unearthed in an investigation by CNN’s KFile.

In one podcast from December 2013 Higbie claimed "the black race" had "lax" morals and that black women thought "breeding is a form of government employment."

Speaking about a time he advertized for free firewood, he, on the radio program, once said: "Only one person was actually cordial to me. Every other black person was rude. They wanted me to either load the wood, completely split it for them or some sort of you know assistance in labor. Now, mind you the ad was for free firewood, come take it all you want. And I believe that this translates directly into the culture that is breeding this welfare and the high percentage of people on welfare in the black race. It's a lax of morality."

He also said he was bothered by black Americans calling themselves African-Americans when they had not been to Africa: "So barring dual citizenship, you're American or you're African, but you're not both. I don't care what you think. That's another thing that just sets me off."

Not just racist comments, Higbie was also heard on the radio show demeaning Muslims and also referred to members of the military suffering from severe PTSD as having "a weak mind" and that they were faking it to obtain federal money. In one episode in 2013, he said U.S. citizens with guns should be allowed to shoot undocumented immigrants at the border. In a following episode he revealed what he felt about gay people: "You know, I don't like gay people. I just don't."

The conservative media personality was asked by the president to direct the public image and messaging of the CNCS external affairs bureau in August. The non-profit organization, according to its website, connects volunteers with service opportunities across the world in the areas of disaster services, economic opportunities, etc. It also manages volunteer services like AmeriCorps and Senior Corps.

After his departure from CNCS, Samantha Jo Warfield, a spokesperson from the organization issued a statement that said: "Effective immediately, Carl Higbie has resigned as Chief of External Affairs at CNCS."

Previously, he served as the spokesman for the Trump-aligned Great America PAC, during the time he ginned up controversy by coming out in support of Trump’s controversial campaign promise of a Muslim registry. In an interview on Megyn Kelly’s Fox News show in November 2016, Higbie cited the effectiveness of Japanese internment camps in the U.S. during World War II as "precedent" for a Muslim registry system.

"We’ve done it based on race, we’ve done it based on religion, we’ve done it based on region. We’ve done it with Iran back — back a while ago. We did it during World War II with Japanese," Higbie said.

Higbie reportedly also enjoyed a close relationship with the Trump family.