'Trolling is an addiction': Trump-CNN meme creator 'HanAssholeSolo' apologizes for 'racist and anti-Semitic' posts

‘HanAssholeSolo,’ the Reddit user who took credit for a gif that depicted Donald Trump clotheslining a CNN logo (a gif that would later be posted on the president’s personal and official Twitter feeds) apologized for his history of “racist, bigoted and anti-Semitic” posts on the site.

“I would like to apologize to the members of the Reddit community for getting this site and this sub embroiled in a controversy that should never have happened,” HanAssholeSolo wrote in a Fourth of July post on Reddit.

Trump on Sunday posted a video of himself at a wrestling event, body-slamming a man with the CNN logo superimposed on his head. The post immediately prompted outrage from journalists and lawmakers, who viewed the tweet as inciting violence against reporters. HanAssholeSolo claimed he made the gif, writing on the pro-Trump subreddit r/the_Donald, “Holy sh*t!! I wake up and have my morning coffee and who retweets my shitpost but the MAGA EMPORER [sic] himself!!! I am honored!!”

Shortly thereafter, news organizations noticed a history of offensive posts, including casual use of highly offensive terms including “n*****,” “goatf*cker” and “f****t.”

“500,000 dead Muslims is a good start,” HanAssholeSolo wrote in one response. “Kill the rest and I’ll be impressed. Good keep up the good work until the last Islamic piece of shit is wiped from the planet.”

On Tuesday, HanAssholeSolo said he was sorry for his remarks. “I am not the person that the media portrays me to be in real life,” HanAssholeSolo wrote. “I was trolling and posting things to get a reaction from the subs on Reddit.”

“It became an addiction as to how far I could of with the posts that were made,” the Reddit user wrote, calling the incident an “extreme wake up call to always consider how others may thing or feel about what is being said before clicking the submit button.”

“Free speech is a right we all have, but it shouldn’t be used in the manner that it was in the posts that were put on this site,” HanAssholeSolo said, before arguing he intended for the meme to be taken “purely as satire.”

“I do not advocate violence against the press and the meme I posted was in no way advocating that in any way, shape or form,” the user continued. “Our First Amendment protect the press from things like violence, and we as American citizens should respect that even if the opinions of the press are not in line with our own.”

“I had no idea alone would take it and put sound to it and then have it put up on the President’s Twitter feed,” HanAssholeSolo wrote. “It was a prank, nothing more.”

HanAssholeSolo finished his apology post by urging fellow Redditors to seek help if they struggle with a trolling addiction.

“If you have a problem with trolling it is an addiction just like any other addiction someone can have to something and don’t be embarrassed to ask for help,” HanAssholeSolo wrote. “Trolling is nothing more than bullying a wide audience.”

“We as Redactors and as Americans are better than this,” the Reddit user added.

Read the whole post below, via Twitter: