Yeah it is.
The old KlanRAT was just trying to get himself off the hook for having used it.
It's a deliberate (Southern dialect) mispronunciation of the word negro....which means black.
Not as far as I’m concerned. The word perfectly describes people of a particular character and skin color is irrelevant to it. Ayn Rand called them moochers. You can call them liberals or Progressives if you prefer.