Racist emails target Barack Obama

The most recent of these include portraits of the first 43 American presidents followed by a picture of cartoon eyeballs set against an entirely dark background.

The offensive email was sent by Sherri Goforth, who works as a legislative assistant for the Republican leadership in the Tennessee state senate.

Ms Goforth, who has been allowed to keep her job following the discovery, said she regretted sending it to the wrong email list.

"I inadvertently hit the wrong button," she said. "I'm very sick about it and it's one of those things I can't change or take back."

Earlier this month Diann Jones, a vice-chairman of the Collin Count Republican Party in Texas, apologised for an email that denounced plans fro a tax on guns as "another terrific idea from the black house and its minions".

In February, Dean Grose, the mayor of Los Alamitos in California, sent an email to a black businesswoman, depicting the White House lawn planted with watermelons.

He later defended himself saying he was not aware of the stereotype that the African-American diet consisted of watermelon and fried chicken.

And just after Mr Obama's inauguration Carol Carter, a member of Florida's state Republican committee, referring to those that drowned in Hurricane Katrina, wrote to colleagues saying "I'm confused.

How can 2,000,000 blacks get into Washington DC in one day in sub zero temps when 200,000 couldn't get out of New Orleans in 85 degree temps with four days notice?"
Although Ms Carter was forced to resign, the local Republican executive defended her saying she doesn't have a racist bone in her body'.

Michael Steele, the party's first black National Committee chairman admitted winning ethnic minority votes was going to be difficult as too many officials "don't give a damn".

To them, he said, "outreach means let's throw a cocktail party, find some black folks and Hispanics and women, wrap our arms around them - See, look at us'. And then we go back to the same old, same old."