Senate candidate calls Melania Trump 'hoebag' and says she 'works by the hour'

Mark Roberts slammed by fellow conservatives for Twitter rant

A US congressional candidate has been criticised after he described Melania Trump as a “hoebag” on Twitter.

Mark Roberts, who is running in Oregon’s 2nd district was responding to a tweet from conservative activist Charlie Kirk about the First Lady.

“Did you know the First Lady works by the hour? #thinkdirty #hoebag," Mr Roberts wrote.

As fellow Twitter users began criticising his comment, the candidate doubled down, responding to one tweet by saying: “You start whipping out $100’s and see how #classy she gets #makeitrain!”

Eventually his comments came to the attention of Fox News host Laura Ingraham, who asked Twitter founder Jack Dorsey to remove the tweet and suspend Mr Roberts’ account. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy made a similar request, tweeting: “Comments like these have no business on any platform.”

Mr Robert’s account was still active as of Wednesday afternoon.

The 48-year-old – who has previously described himself as a conservative – is running as an independent in November’s midterms. To win, he will have to unseat nine-time incumbent Representative Greg Walden – something political experts believe it a long shot.

On his campaign website, Mr Roberts says he is “not a fan of the Trump administration” and lists Mr Trump as one of the top five people he would not take a selfie with. In previous tweets, he referred to US Senator Kamala Harris as “hot”, and said of the president: “Get that man a haircut and non-fat chocolate cake!”

In the “FAQ” section of his website, Mr Roberts says he would spend his first day in Washington viewing Nazi artwork in the Centre for Military History.

“Not to worry, I’m Jewish,” he adds.

Mr Roberts did not respond to The Independent's request for comment.