A New Jersey Democrat is refusing to resign after a post-Election Day tweet referencing Abraham Lincoln's assassination surfaced Wednesday.
Chris Emrich, a member of the Collingswood Progressive Democrats, made what he claims was a "stupid" remark when responding to critics of The Lincoln Project, a committee of Republicans against the reelection of President Trump, according to a copy of the tweets obtained by Fox News.
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After a Twitter user dubbed the group the "Stinkin' Project" Emrich replied, "need a John Wilkes Booth Project imo," according to a copy of the tweets. Emrich's tweet is a reference to the man who assassinated former President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in April 1865.
The Twitter accounts are protected and can be seen only by the user's followers. Emrich's comment came around 8:45 a.m. Wednesday, according to the time stamp.
Abraham Lincoln (iStock)
Shortly after the comments surfaced, however, Camden County's Democratic Committee called for his resignation because his tweet was both "disgraceful" and "dangerous."
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"The idea that someone would apparently threaten the life of a sitting President, regardless of party, is unconscionable, dangerous, and antithetical to our democratic values," Camden County Democratic Committee Chairman James Beach told Fox News in a statement.
The tweet "exemplifies the dire state of American affairs and has no place in our Democratic Committee," Beach added.
The committee is also asking law enforcement to investigate the "apparent blatant threat."
But the criticism didn't stop there. Camden County Republicans also lambasted Emrich.
The committee took to Facebook, saying it was “what the woke and morally superior progressives from Camden County think of life in general, only certain lives matter it seems.”
Emrich blamed the move on stress regarding the election.
“Like a lot of people, I’ve been stressed out following the election and I made a stupid joke. I’m going to own it,” Emrich told NJ.com. “I made a dumb joke on Twitter. I’m embarrassed. It’s something I’m not proud of.”
He added that he has no plans to resign from his role within the committee, the outlet reported.
Representatives for the Collingswood Progressive Democrats have not returned Fox News' request for comment.
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