Rangel admits Obama comment was 'inappropriate'

U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel says it was "entirely inappropriate" that he made a comment about President Barack Obama needing to be careful when visiting Harlem, where a black police officer was fatally shot by a white colleague last week.

Rangel said in a statement Monday that it "was entirely inappropriate to bring the president and his wife into this discussion." He also says he hopes his "off-the-cuff comment did not cause embarrassment to anyone."

Rangel was answering a reporter's question about what Obama should do on his trip to the city Saturday with the first lady. He was apparently alluding to the fatal shooting of Officer Omar J. Edwards on Thursday in Harlem.

The shooting is under investigation and sparked concerns about whether race was a factor.