NEW: Kansas City mayor accuses Governor of racism for calling Super Bowl mass shooters ‘thugs’

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas said on Friday that Missouri Gov. Mike Parson used a racial "dog whistle" when the governor said "thugs" were responsible for the shooting.

He made the comments while speaking to KCUR host Steve Kraske on the radio program "Up to Date."

“I certainly do think this was criminal activity, it’s lawlessness and I think that that’s troubling,” Lucas told Kraske when the radio host asked about the governor's comments. “But ‘thugs’ is a dog whistle in the most classic sense and I have seen this dog whistle time and again.”

A "dog whistle" when referred to in politics is often used describe something, such as a term, that is allegedly coded language to communicate a message to racists, sexists, or other groups who hold biases.

In the interview, Lucas went on to rail on gun rights and spoke about all the gun violence in Kansas City.

He then said that the only reason the identities of the shooters who committed the crime have not been released yet is because they are juveniles and not their race. This is despite that the juveniles will be charged as adults in the mass shooting.

In 2021, Lucas announced plans to defund the KC Police Department by 47 million dollars and that the reason for the decision was centered around “listening to black and brown people."

He suggested that $47 million cut from the department "is not actually a lot." He then railed on those who live outside the city for making suggestions on how to solve crime in the town.