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Former New York Gov. David Paterson on Saturday said Rudy Giuliani embarrassed himself with a simplistic and almost childish attack on President Barack Obama and laughed at his insistence that he couldnt be racist because Obama had a white mother and was raised by white grandparents.

The president is still black, Paterson said in an interview with POLITICO, taking time out from the winter meeting of the Democratic National Convention, which he was attending as the New York State Democratic Party chairman.

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Paterson, whos African-American, said Giulianis defense of his comments earlier this week that Obama doesnt love America doesnt make sense.

Gee, you look at a lot of African-Americans, you can tell, that some place there was some white lineage and guess what, they got discriminated against just like everybody else, Paterson said.

Paterson, who was a state senator from Manhattan during Giulianis years as mayor of New York City and has known him since, said he wasnt as concerned with an apology to Obama.

I think Giuliani should apologize to himself because hes embarrassing himself on the national stage, and he knows better. Theres no excuse for that type of thing, he said.

Paterson said Giulianis recent spate of comments attacking Obamas commitment to America seems like a plea for attention from a man who ran for the White House in 2008, toyed with a second run in 2012, and has seen the 2016 race take shape without him.

There are those who see a lot of people running for president, theyre not on that list and maybe theyre just craving for a little attention, and maybe theyll just say anything to try to get the rest of us to talk about them, Paterson said.

If thats the case, Paterson said, it would make what Giuliani said worse.

Link:
Paterson on Giuliani's racism defense: 'The president is ...