An ex staffer in former President Barack Obama’s White House is coming under fire for making a racist joke about Ohio GOP Senate candidate Bernie Moreno’s Colombian heritage.

In response to a local humor account asking the best way to learn Spanish in Ohio on X, Kyle Herman — who is a city councilman in the Akron suburb of Stow — suggested using Spanish to “Ask Bernie Moreno in his native language why he moved here to steal real American’s jobs.”

Reactions to Herman’s post online were swift, with one user accusing him of being a “classic progressive racist.” Another added, “I see racism is thriving in the Democratic Party.”

“Maybe think before you post next time,” one X user lamented. “This is just icky.”

Moreno was born in Bogota, Colombia and emigrated to the US when he was 5. In 1983, at age 18, he became a naturalized American citizen.

Herman tried to play off the post as a joke, claiming it was meant to mock “MAGA Republicans’ racist rhetoric against immigrants.”

According to Herman’s LinkedIn page, he graduated with a masters degree from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and also served in the Obama administration as a writer in the White House Correspondence Office.

He said he previously managed pro-democracy programs in Lebanon and Iraq for the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs.

Moreno declined to comment.

Moreno is running against Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, who has consistently led in the race.

An AARP Ohio poll published Aug. 1 shows Brown up 46% to Moreno’s 42%. However, the Republican is now pulling ahead with voters over 55.