Tweet from top Texas GOP official's account calls Hillary Clinton the c-word
AUSTIN, TX -- Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller blamed hackers and then staffer for a tweet from his campaign account that called Hillary Clinton a "c---."
Texas Tribune reporter, John Jordan grabbed a screen shot of the now-deleted tweet.
Initially Miller claimed via Twitter that he was hacked, but that tweet has also been removed.
The original tweet, which appeared to be copy-and-pasted from another user, purported to show the results of a poll, with Republican nominee Donald Trump earning 44 percent support and Clinton getting 43 percent. However, in place of Clinton's name was the obscenity.
SEE ALSO: Miss Teen USA responds to controversial tweets
Miller's campaign now says his account was not hacked and that a staffer copied and pasted the tweet without proofreading it thoroughly.
The campaign released this statement which reads:
The campaign was retweeting information on Twitter today and inadvertently retweeted a tweet that they were not aware contained a derogatory term. The tweet was taken down as soon as possible. Commissioner Miller finds the term vulgar and offensive and apologizes to anyone who may have seen it.
It's still not clear why Miller's campaign said the account had been hacked before confirming if that was the case.
It's also not clear if the staffer responsible for the tweet will be disciplined.
Milller issued a series of tweets to clarify the C-gate scandal.
Governor Greg Abott has condemned the tweet and issued a statement which read, ""The language is reprehensible and it is an embarrassment. No true Texas gentleman would ever talk this way."
Miller, who sits on Trump's Agricultural Advisory Committee, has become one of his most vocal supporters in Texas in the home stretch to Election Day. Before the offensive tweet surfaced Tuesday afternoon, Miller was enthusiastically tweeting about other polls and floating conspiracy theories about Clinton.
