On Friday, President Obama addressed the death of Trayvon Martin for the first time.

President Obama: “I think all of us have to do some soul searching to figure out how does something like this happen. And that means that we examine the laws and the context for what happened, as well as the specifics of the incident. But my main message is to the parents of Trayvon Martin. You know, if I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon. And, you know, I think they are right to expect that all of us, as Americans, are going to take this with the seriousness it deserves and that we’re going to get to the bottom of exactly what happened. Thank you.”

On the campaign trail, Republican presidential challengers Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum criticized Obama’s statement. Gingrich said, “Trying to turn it into a racial issue is fundamentally wrong. I really find it appalling.”