President Donald Trump ended up retweeting a post by one of his supporters that called for Democrat-led cities to be abandoned and left to rot.
The tweet was made by Brandon Straka, who is a pro-Trump activist.
Straka first made headlines in June of this year after he was banned from American Airlines for refusing to wear a face mask.
A Trump supporter who ended up tweeting people to 'Leave democrat cities. Let them rot.' ended up being retweeted by President Donald Trump
The tweet was accompanied by video footage of a group of people driving in their car in New York City and being stopped by protesters in the street
The footage saw a man driving a car through Midtown Manhattan when they were suddenly stopped by protesters. The video was shot by a retired NYPD detective last Thursday
Straka's tweet on Sunday afternoon was accompanied with a video clip shot on Thursday showing protesters near New York's Times Square.
'Leave Democrat cities,' wrote Straka. 'Let them rot. The media and The Democrats have activated this mental illness and it's going to get more and more people hurt and killed. WalkAway from the radical left. And do it quickly.'
The video was shot by retired NYPD detective Rob O'Donnell.
'NYC Times Square last night. They are threatening bodily & property damage, limiting the free flow of traffic, unlawfully holding others against their will. If NYC Leadership won't take action, the citizens will need to defend themselves.'
The video shows Black Live Matter protesters yelling at the driver of a black Jeep to turn around as the demonstrators blocked part of the road.
The tacit approval of the president appeared to anger many in the media including CNN's Jake Tapper
Washington Post columnist shared her despair at the president's retweeting
The tweet comes as pictures of homeless people lining streets of Los Angeles and New York City become more commonplace in recent months. Pictured, New York City on Friday
Trump's tweet came in for criticism including from CNN anchor Jake Tapper.
'I couldn't believe it when I first saw it, but I checked, and yes, the president of the United States actually retweeted this message to 'Leave Democrat cities. Let them rot.'
Similar despair was show by political reporter for the Washington Post.
'Have we lost our capacity to be shocked? The President of the United States -- who is supposed to lead an entire nation -- just retweeted someone urging "Leave Democrat cities. Let them rot."'
A former columnist for the New York Daily News, Brandon Friedman, said that the tweet showed the country was in a 'civil war' or sorts.
'This is from the commander-in-chief, the President of the United States, further confirming that we are presently in a cold civil war,' Friedman wrote.
A homeless tent is seen next to the Hollywood sculpture at the corner of Hollywood Blvd and Labrea Blvd last week in Hollywood, California
Homeless people congregate inside a homeless tent encampment across the street from City Hall in San Francisco, California seen in May of this year
New York Daily News columnist Brandon Friedman said that the country is now in a 'cold civil war'
Trump's retweet came in for plenty of criticism on Twitter in the hours after his posting
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