A Democratic lawmaker from Kentucky said Sunday he was only joking after he faced intense backlash for suggesting a ban on teenagers wearing "Make America Great Again" hats.

On Saturday, video of white teenagers wearing "Make America Great Again" hats surrounding a Native American elder in Washington, D.C., went viral, leading to widespread reports of how the teens, students from Kentucky's Covington Catholic High School, were mistreating the man.

"I am calling for a total and complete shutdown of teenagers wearing MAGA hats until we can figure out what is going on. They seem to be poisoning young minds," Rep. John Yarmuth tweeted Sunday morning. "The conduct we saw in this video is beyond appalling, but it didn’t happen in a vacuum. This is a direct result of the racist hatred displayed daily by the President of the United States who, sadly, some mistake for a role model."

[Related: School, diocese condemn behavior of teens who harassed Native American veteran]



The conduct we saw in this video is beyond appalling, but it didn’t happen in a vacuum. This is a direct result of the racist hatred displayed daily by the President of the United States who, sadly, some mistake for a role model. [2/2] — Rep. John Yarmuth (@RepJohnYarmuth) January 20, 2019



The tweets were "ratioed," meaning the number of comments vastly outnumbered retweets and likes — a sign of widespread negative reaction.

As the pushback mounted and revelations that there was more to the story — extended video shows a small group of Black Hebrew Israelites yelling obscenities at passersby, drawing in the Covington Catholic High School crowd — Yarmuth claimed it was a "joke" that was being misconstrued by President Trump's supporters.

"The President’s fans seem far more upset by my (obvious) joke about banning hats than they were when the President said literally the same thing about banning actual human beings. Go figure," Yarmuth tweeted Sunday evening, along with an old quote from the president. "And if there was any question, I am a passionate supporter of the 1st Amendment. I will always defend the right to wear MAGA hats. Just not the un-American policies they represent."



And if there was any question, I am a passionate supporter of the 1st Amendment. I will always defend the right to wear MAGA hats. Just not the un-American policies they represent. — Rep. John Yarmuth (@RepJohnYarmuth) January 20, 2019



Yarmuth represents the 3rd Congressional District in Kentucky while Covington Catholic High School is located in the 4th District.

The congressman for the 4th District, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., said his discomfort with the initial narrative was why he initially withheld judgment. He also praised the students for their restraint.



(1/5) I was uncomfortable when I saw the video & description that first went viral, so I understand the initial reactions to the CovCath video. I chose to wait for more facts before responding because the narrative did not match what I know to be the character of these students. — Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) January 20, 2019

(3/5) I’ve now watched over an hour of other videos from 4 different cameras of the incident in front of the Lincoln Memorial. I urge everyone to watch the other videos before passing judgement. Would you have remained that composed at that age under those circumstances? — Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) January 20, 2019