Jason Spencer – the Republican legislator who repeatedly used the N-word and exposed his bare bottom on an episode of Sacha Baron Cohen's Showtime series "Who Is America?" – is resigning from office. Spencer has submitted his letter of resignation to George House Speaker David Ralston, which will take effect on July 31.
The departure of Spencer – who, prior to Cohen's show, was best known for introducing a bill that would ban Muslim women from wearing religious veils that cover their faces and for threatening a black attorney over Confederate monuments – marks the first concrete consequence of "Who Is America?"
The series has been imbued in controversy – and under fire from the right – for pranking a slew of current and former lawmakers, including former Vice President Dick Cheney; former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin; and Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA).
In Sunday's second episode of the series, Cohen disguised himself as an Israeli anti-terrorism expert named Col. Erran Morad, and he convinced Spencer that a series of racist acts would protect him against Muslim terrorists.
As the cameras rolled, Spencer employed a bigoted "Chinese" accent – featuring him blubbering words like "konichiwa," "sushi" and "Ho Chi Minh City" at random – screamed the "N-word" again and again with seemingly no coaxing, dropped his pants and disparaged Muslims.
Once the show aired, Spencer was immediately condemned by members of the left and the right alike.
"Representative Spencer has disgraced himself and should resign immediately," Ralston said in a statement. "Georgia is better than this."
And Georgia's Republican Governor Nathan Deal said on Twitter Monday: "The actions and language used by Jason Spencer are appalling and offensive. There is no excuse for this type of behavior, ever, and I am saddened and disgusted by it."
Spencer was already on the way out of office after losing his primary in the spring, but he initially resisted calls to step down before the end of his term.
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"By the time the speaker’s office announced the resignation, a fierce bipartisan effort to cast Mr. Spencer out of office had taken shape," The New York Times reported. "It was clear that he would face sustained public and private pressure, and black lawmakers had planned a state capitol news conference for Wednesday morning to demand that Mr. Spencer step aside."
Before the episode went live, Spencer released a statement accusing Cohen of tricking him into a "bogus self-defense and antiterrorism training" video, which he claimed he agreed to because he had received death threats following his proposal to ban Muslim women from wearing veils in public.
"This media company’s deceptive and fraudulent behavior is exactly why President Donald Trump was elected," he added.
Monday, Spencer released a second statement to The Washington Post.
"Sacha Baron Cohen and his associates took advantage of my paralyzing fear that my family would be attacked," he said. "My fears were so heightened at that time, I was not thinking clearly nor could I appreciate what I was agreeing to when I participated in his 'class.'"
Spencer added that he "deeply" regrets the language he used and apologized for "this ridiculously ugly episode."
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