A US politician has said he will resign after he exposed himself and shouted racial slurs on Sacha Baron Cohen’s new TV show.
Georgia representative Jason Spencer has said he will step down at the end of the month, despite an earlier vow to serve out his term despite the fallout over an episode of British star Cohen’s show, Who Is America?
A one-sentence note from Mr Spencer reads: “This email/letter is to serve as an official resignation notice to your office that I will be resigning my post effective July 31, 2018.”
GA State Representative Jason Spencer meets #ErranMorad.#SachaBaronCohen #WhoIsAmerica #Showtime https://t.co/2htAdduiiP
— Who Is America? (@SHOwhoisAmerica) July 23, 2018
In Sunday night’s broadcast of the Showtime series, Cohen poses as an Israeli military expert who persuades Mr Spencer to take part in several outlandish exercises. The representative is told they are making a counter-terrorism video.
Mr Spencer repeatedly shouts a racial slur for black people after Cohen tells him the tactic is useful for drawing bystanders’ attention to an unfolding attack.
He also drops his trousers, then his underwear, before backing his exposed rear end toward Cohen while shouting “USA!” and “America!”
Cohen had told Mr Spencer this would incite fear in homophobic jihadists.
The segment also shows Mr Spencer speaking with a mock Asian accent while using a selfie-stick to surreptitiously insert a camera phone between the legs of a woman dressed in traditional Muslim clothing.
David Ralston, the Republican speaker for the state house of representatives had led calls for Mr Spencer’s immediate resignation.
Mr Spencer apologised for the “ridiculously ugly episode”, but initially refused to step down.
He lost a Republican primary for his seat on May 22, but he could have remained in public office through to the November election.