AUGUSTA, Maine — Maine Gov. Paul LePage has apologized for his remark about out-of-state drug dealers impregnating "young white" girls, saying it was a slip of the tongue.

At times defiant, the Republican governor told reporters Friday that he never intended to inject race into the debate over Maine's heroin epidemic.

He says, "My brain was slower than my mouth." He says he meant to say "Maine women."

LePage is white. On Wednesday, he described out-of-state drug dealers as "guys with the name D-Money, Smoothie, Shifty" and said, "Half the time they impregnate a young white girl before they leave."

The comment drew immediate criticism.

The state Senate Democratic leader says the comments were at best "careless or poorly stated."

The president of the NAACP's Bangor chapter called the remarks "sad" and "foolish."