Biden official says past social media posts don't reflect 'current views'

A White House official who fueled controversy with social media posts attacking police, supporting the anti-Israel movement and promoting “Russiagate” is now downplaying the messages, saying they were written when he was younger and do not reflect his current views.

Tyler Cherry was promoted last week to deputy director of communications at the White House, after more than three years at the Interior Department under Secretary Deb Haaland. The promotion brought renewed attention to some of Cherry's past inflammatory posts.

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Interior Department spokesman Tyler Cherry has been promoted to deputy director of communications at the White House. (Getty Images)

In a 2015 tweet, Cherry said he was “praying even harder for an end to a capitalist police state driven by explicit and implicit racial bias.”

The tweet came amid riots sparked by the death in police custody of Freddie Gray, a black man, in Baltimore.

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In another article published a few months later, Cherry said that modern policing was a “direct evolution of slave patrols and lynchings.”

Many of his messages defend the cause of the Palestinians against Israel. In a July 25, 2014 post, Cherry wrote: “Cheer in bars for the end of the occupation of Palestine – no shame and f… your looks #ISupportGaza #FreePalestine.” »

Other messages were directed at Republicans, whom he accused of being too focused on “white grievance politics.” Another categorical call for the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the United States.

On Sunday, Cherry wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter: “Past social media posts from my childhood do not reflect my current views. Period.”

“I support this administration’s agenda – and will continue my communications work focused on our climate and environmental policies,” he wrote.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Cherry for comment on his evolving beliefs. White House principal deputy press secretary Andrew Bates previously told Fox News Digital that the White House was “very proud to have Tyler on the team.”

The Biden administration, much to the dismay of the Democratic Party's progressive wing, has reaffirmed its support for Israel as the country continues to wage war against Hamas in response to the terrorist group's Oct. 7 attack that killed around 1,200 people and left hundreds dead. taken hostage.

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However, in recent months, a rift has widened between the Biden administration and that of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The White House has become increasingly critical of his leadership in recent months as the death toll in Gaza has risen.

Andrew Mark Miller of Fox News Digital contributed to this report.