Appearing on Meet the Press on Sunday, PBS host Tavis Smiley doubled down on remarks about President Obama’s response to the George Zimmerman not guilty verdict in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin — comments that caused a big backlash against Smiley on Twitter.

Smiley began by accusing the president of only speaking out on Trayvon Martin because he was “pushed,” saying: “I appreciate and applaud the fact that the president did finally show up. But this town has been spinning a story that’s not altogether true. He did not walk to the podium for an impromptu address to the nation. He was pushed to that podium. A week of protests outside the White House, pressure building on him inside the White House, pushed him to that podium.”