Politico reporter Marc Caputo apologized Wednesday morning for contributing to the “cycle of rage” after he mocked a video of Trump supporters on Twitter.

The video, posted by CNN’s Jim Acosta, showed attendees booing and screaming at the media during President Trump’s rally Tuesday night in Florida.

“Just a sample of the sad scene we faced at the Trump rally in Tampa,” the chief White House correspondent wrote.

Just a sample of the sad scene we faced at the Trump rally in Tampa. I’m very worried that the hostility whipped up by Trump and some in conservative media will result in somebody getting hurt. We should not treat our fellow Americans this way. The press is not the enemy. pic.twitter.com/IhSRw5Ui3R — Jim Acosta (@Acosta) August 1, 2018

In a now-deleted tweet, Mr. Caputo quipped, “If you put everyone’s mouths together in this video, you’d get a full set of teeth.”

The tweet was immediately met with criticism by conservatives.

This is so gross and this kind of statement is what so many in the middle of the country think the media thinks of them. @politico should hold their reporters to a higher standard. https://t.co/LEDZBKq96g — Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) August 1, 2018

Mr. Caputo initially tried to defend the tweet, slamming critics for focusing on his snarky comment instead of the behavior showcased in the video.

I’d argue i was more clever — Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) August 1, 2018

So you’re more annoyed by the snark than the behavior snarked upon? I still don’t understand.



The good news is you will be more disappointed with me in the future — Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) August 1, 2018

In another deleted tweet, the Politico reporter wrote, “Oh, no! I made fun of garbage people jeering at another person as they falsely accused him of lying and flipped him off. Someone fetch a fainting couch.”

Mr. Caputo later deleted the tweets, then posted screenshots of them in the name of transparency, saying he didn’t want to become a part of the problem.

I need to apologize for tweeting caustic remarks after seeing a reporter berated & abused. Hate begets hate. My comments referred ONLY to those jeering and swearing at the man, not a broad swath of people. But the fault is mine for causing confusion and feeding anger. 1/3 — Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) August 1, 2018

In the age of social media, where divisiveness serves no decent purpose, these flippant comments on my part only made things worse and contributed to a cycle of rage that I should not have inflamed further. So I’m sorry. 2/3 — Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) August 1, 2018

While it’s usually a good idea to just delete tweets that are wrong, I own this and the criticism (both accurate and misleading) that has followed. I’ll do better. Here they are: 3/3 pic.twitter.com/G2rZrHjYWb — Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) August 1, 2018

Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters

Copyright © 2020 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.