President Trump’s defense of white supremacists during a news conference on Tuesday left the former communications director of the Republican National Committee wondering how Republicans can possibly persuade minorities to vote for them going forward.

Doug Heye, who most recently served as deputy chief of staff for former House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA) and is now a fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School as well as a CNN contributor, has long been anti-Trump. But in a series of tweets posted after Trump’s news conference, Heye alluded to the damage he thinks Trump’s excuse-making for bigots is doing to the broader Republican brand.

After that Trump press conference, I don't know how I can tell any minority why they should vote Republican. — Doug Heye (@DougHeye) August 15, 2017


Heye later tweeted that his disillusionment has reached the point where he’s asked his former employer to stop contacting him.

I've asked the press offices at both the White House & RNC to remove me from their email lists. — Doug Heye (@DougHeye) August 15, 2017

Heye’s comments stand in contrast to the current communications director for the RNC, Trump loyalist Kayleigh McEnany, who suggested Trump’s praise of white supremacists and neo-Nazis is part of his message of “love and inclusiveness.”

President @realDonaldTrump once again denounced hate today. The GOP stands behind his message of love and inclusiveness! — Kayleigh McEnany (@kayleighmcenany) August 15, 2017

Trump won eight percent of the black vote last November, after a campaign in which his main message to African Americans fell along the lines of “your lives are already terrible so why not try something different.”