'Sincerest form of flattery': Republican gives excuse after photos show him in blackface

Photos obtained by The New York Times show Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) sporting a Michael Jackson costume wearing blackface as part of a Halloween costume in 2006.

According to the report, the images were taken around October 2006 when Lawler, then 20, was at a college social gathering. They show him wearing a black shirt and a red jacket, with him striking a signature Jackson dance pose in another, the publication reported Thursday.

The report noted that “his face has also been visibly darkened.”

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Lawler, 38, is locked in a reelection battle against Democrat Mondaire Jones, a Black former congressman, in a suburban swing district, according to the Times.

The congressman did not dispute the authenticity of the photos and told the Times in a statement that the costume was intended to be “truly the sincerest form of flattery, a genuine homage to my musical hero since I was a little kid trying to moonwalk through my mom’s kitchen.”