Mayor denies calling black people ‘chimps’: It was an attack on me that ‘dishonored Martin Luther King’

The mayor of Warren, Michigan has pushed back at reports of him calling black people "chimps" and describing women as "dried up c*nts" on tape as "phony," saying their release was timed to ruin his Martin Luther King Jr. Day address.

On Monday, the Motor City Muckraker reported on audio tapes, which they claimed were of Mayor Jim Fouts using the N-word and saying, “Blacks do look like chimpanzees. I was watching this black woman with her daughter and they looked like two chimps.”

In the tapes, Fouts went on to say he doesn't date older women because, “F*ck that shit. I’m not interested in any old ugly hag. I think after a certain age they are dried up, washed up burned out,” adding, "When they get older, they’re just mean, hateful dried-up c*nts.”

Writing on Facebook, Fouts called the tapes phony and blamed Macomb County exec Mark Hackel for releasing them on Martin Luther King Day to embarrass him -- and dishonor King.

"I just attended what should have been a joyous occasion for our 4th annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. ceremony," Fouts wrote. "Instead Mark Hackel and friends attempted to hijack this ceremony by releasing more vile, vitriolic, phony tapes against me. This was timed so that they came out just before our noon ceremony. This distracted from my major announcement of the appointment of Greg Murray to be the new diversity coordinator."

Fouts added that the tapes were released to incite the media to come after him at the MLK day ceremony, writing, "This effort at negative tapes is designed to distract from my efforts of inclusion for all. The media as usual bombarded me with questions all at once and allowed an agitator to shout over me! This tactic dishonors the memory of Martin Luther King a man of peace."

Fouts also listed various African-Americans and minorities he has appointed to offices in his administration, including, "a Moslem that I appointed."

You can read the Facebook post below: