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Fresno State Professor Apologizes for Trump Tweets
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By David Taub, Senior Reporter
Published 8 years ago on
April 12, 2017

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Two days after Fresno State said it would look into the controversial tweets of Professor Lars Maischak, the instructor is changing his tune.

Although the controversial tweets about President Donald Trump were from February, they did not come to public notice until Saturday when a Breitbart story exposed them. That sent off a firestorm on social media. Many in the conservative community have called for his firing. Among the more inflammatory messages from Maischak called for Trump to be hanged, a monument for Trump’s would-be assassin and disparaging remarks about Republicans and Mary, mother of Jesus.

Maischak initially took offense to Fresno State and President Joseph Castro’s offense. Maischak e-mailed the media, “I am appalled that the president of the university is allowing himself to be instrumentalized for a right-wing smear campaign.”

Now, in an e-mail to GV Wire, Maischak apologizes. The content of the e-mail (grammar appears as it came in the e-mail):

I apologize for the tone and content of my statements made on twitter.
I ask forgiveness of those who felt threatened or offended by them.

It was never my intent to harm anyone, nor to encourage others to harm anyone.

My statements each represent the end point of a dark train of thought triggered by my despair over the actions of the present U.S. government.
That is what I meant by calling them “dark predictions.”
It felt cathartic at the time to write them down.
With 28 followers on twitter at the time, I never expected them to be read by anyone but a close circle of acquaintances who would know to place them in their context.
To treat twitter as of no more consequence than a journal was a poor decision.

I have deleted my twitter account, to preclude the possibility that anyone reading my statements in the future would take them as encouragement to act violently or unlawfully.

In this spirit, I am prepared to take full responsibility for my statements.

 

Castro sent this message to the media:

“I appreciate Dr. Maischak’s apology and willingness to take accountability for the statements made on his Twitter account. In his note to me, Dr. Maischak reiterated that it was not his intent to incite violence or harm others, however, Fresno State has a responsibility to continue a review of the situation. As previously stated, the University takes this matter seriously and is handling it in accordance with applicable law, policy and the requirements of the faculty collective bargaining unit agreement.”

Fresno State is on spring break this week. Classes, including Maischak’s American history course, resume Monday, April 17.

Contact David Taub

Phone: 559-492-4037 / e-mail

This story was not subject to the approval of Granville Homes.

 

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David Taub,
Senior Reporter
Curiosity drives David Taub. The award-winning journalist might be shy, but feels mighty with a recorder in his hand. He doesn't see it his job to "hold public officials accountable," but does see it to provide readers (and voters) the information needed to make intelligent choices. Taub has been honored with several writing awards from the California News Publishers Association. He's just happy to have his stories read. Joining GV Wire in 2016, Taub covers politics, government and elections, mainly in the Fresno/Clovis area. He also writes columns about local eateries (Appetite for Fresno), pro wrestling (Off the Bottom Rope), and media (Media Man). Prior to joining the online news source, Taub worked as a radio producer for KMJ and PowerTalk 96.7 in Fresno. He also worked as an assignment editor for KCOY-TV in Santa Maria, California, and KSEE-TV in Fresno. He has also worked behind the scenes for several sports broadcasts, including the NCAA basketball tournament, and the Super Bowl. When not spending time with his family, Taub loves to officially score Fresno Grizzlies games. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Taub is a die-hard Giants and 49ers fan. He graduated from the University of Michigan with dual degrees in communications and political science. Go Blue! You can contact David at 559-492-4037 or at Send an Email

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