A Southern California Republican Party official is under fire after allegedly sending an email that included an altered photo depicting President Barack Obama as an ape.
An e-mail allegedly sent by party central committee member Marilyn Davenport depicts a family portrait-style image of apes with Obama's face artificially superimposed on one of them.
Text beneath the photo reads, "Now you know why no birth certificate."
Davenport could not immediately be reached for comment. The alternative newspaper OC Weekly first reported the story, and was told by Davenport that the e-mail was "just an Internet joke." She also asked the Weekly, "You're not going to make a big deal about this are you?"
Republican Party of Orange County Chairman Scott Baugh told The Associated Press on Saturday that he wants an ethics investigation into the incident. "It's just highly inappropriate, it's a despicable message, it drips with racism and I think she should step down from the committee," said Baugh.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110416/ap_on_re_us/us_obama_offensive_email
