A petition pushing to oust Jimmy Kimmel's television show received a response from the White House on Saturday.
In the written statement, representatives from Capitol Hill stated that both Kimmel and network ABC publicly apologized for the off-color skit, adding that the TV station took the spot off of future broadcasts and on the Internet, according to the Associated Press.
The response also stated that free speech, even if it is vulgar, is protected under the United States constitution.
At least 105,000 people signed the petition on the White House's webpage in protest of the spot.
The clip, which featured a group of four children dressed in suits critiquing the government shutdown, was originally broadcasted on October 16. It consisted of a debate between the children on how the United States should address debt owed to China.
One child suggested to "kill everyone in China" as a means to end the debt.
The public responded with a wave of backlash over the skit.
"I was very disturbed by Jimmy Kimmel's 'Kid's Table' show," the petition read. "...Jimmy Kimmel and ABC's management are adults. They had a choice not to air this racist program, which promotes racial hatred."
