The president of the NYU College Republicans of America was forced to step down after calling Republican President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, an "oddity."
Barron is Trump's youngest child and the only child he has with First Lady Melania Trump. The 18-year-old is a freshman at New York University Stern School of Business.
In a Vanity Fair interview examining Barron's college life, Kaya Walker, who heads the NYU chapter of College Republicans, described the President's son as "sort of like an oddity on campus," adding, "he goes to class, he goes home.”
Walker also told the Condé Nast publication that one of her professors said Barron “doesn’t really belong here,” referring to the historically liberal NYU community.
On Monday, College Republicans of America (CRA) issued a statement explaining Walker's comment "does not align with the values and principles upheld" by the campus-based organization.
Although CRA called out the media for "unfairly framing" her observations regarding Barron Trump, they still deemed them "inappropriate."
CRA added:
“We are collaborating closely with the NYU chapter to ensure a smooth transition in leadership."
"Our goal is to reaffirm CRA's dedication to the ideals of the Republican Party and conservative movement in a manner that reflects honorably upon our organization and its mission.”
The national group stated they "broke with 100 years of precedent" when they endorsed Trump by becoming CRA's first national College Republican organization to endorse a presidential candidate ahead of the primaries.
"Our support for President Trump is, and has been, a pillar of our organization," the statement continued.
In response to Walker's comments about Barron, CRA invited President Trump's son to join the group.
CRA President Will Donahue said:
"Barron Trump represents the future of the conservative movement, and we would be honored to have him join College Republicans of America."
"Strong leadership is built on resilience, courage, and the humility to rise above petty hostility - qualities that Barron has already demonstrated. We invite Barron to join us in shaping the future of our party."
You can read the full statement below.
College Republicans of America
Social media users weighed in on the conservative party's hypocrisy on free speech in light of Walker's "gentle critique" of Barron Trump.
In her resignation letter, Walker defended herself, claiming that her comments were "ridiculously misconstrued to suggest that I found Barron Trump's commuter status to be unusual when in reality the majority of NYU's student body-including myself-are commuters."
She said that her full statement shared with Vanity Fair showed her "disappointment in the spectacle that the media and individuals on campus have created through the online circulation of gossip, articles, memes, and even photos taken of Barron in class with no respect whatsoever for his privacy."
Walker noted she has never met Barron, nor seen him around campus.
She also clarified that her "oddity" comment about Barron stemmed from the "unhealthy fascination that people have with a teenager just minding his business by going to college."
She cited twin celebrities Dylan and Cole Sprouse "being followed around and photographed" during their time as NYU students as an example of the "ugly side of our culture on campus and worldwide that delights in forming parasocial relationships with celebrities."
Here is her full statement posted by NYU College Republicans.
NYU College Republicans
The resignation letter concluded with Walker stating she does "not apologize for trying to denounce the campus hysteria," but expressed regret to those she loves and respect who were "caught in the crosshairs of this willful and misreading" of her comments.
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