Corey Stewart, Virginia State chairman of Donald Trump's campaign, took to social media in the wake of the Dallas shootings to blame Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton for the violence that has marred the city and country this week. 

Stewart, who has been considering a run for governor of Virginia according to CBS, posted on Facebook that Clinton and Lt. Governor Ralph Northam were to blame for "encouraging" the violence which lead to the death of five police officers in Dallas. 

The post, which has since been deleted by Stewart, said "Liberal politicians who label police as racists - specifically Hillary Clinton and Virginia Lt. Governor Ralph Northam - are to blame for essentially encouraging the murder of these police officers tonight."

Stewart has since posted a second time on the matter, as well as sharing an image of two police officers uploaded to Facebook by a group which backed the candidacy of Dr. Ben Carson. 

In it, Stewart once again stated that Clinton and Northam are "pitting minorities against the police. Whenever there is a police shooting involving a minority, their knee jerk reaction is to allege racism."

The Trump campaign has distanced themselves form the post in the wake of the controversy, with campaign manager Hope Hicks telling CBS that "Corey does not speak for the campaign and this is not something we agree with."

Speaking in the wake of the shootings, Clinton said they were "an absolutely horrific event", and that the road to a country where "police and citizens all see themselves as being on the same side will require contributions from all of us."

White Americans need to do a better job of listening when African Americans talk about the barriers they face.https://t.co/rmzeEG5HoC

— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) 9 July 2016

Via CBS