MSNBC’s Martin Bashir Apologizes to Sarah Palin Over ‘Offensive’ Slavery Remarks

The host admits he went overboard in saying that the governor deserved to have someone “sh-t in her mouth.”

MSNBC host Martin Bashir apologized during his show Monday for remarks he made on-air suggesting former Alaska governor Sarah Palin deserved to have someone “shit” in her mouth.

“I wanted to take this opportunity to say sorry to Mrs. Palin and to also offer an ‘unreserved apology’ to her friends and family, her supporters, our viewers and anyone who may have heard what I said,” he said.

Bashir made the inappropriate comments Friday in response to Palin’s remarks that U.S. debt to China would result in a “slavery” situation.

“Our free stuff today is being paid for today by taking money from our children and borrowing from China,” Palin said during a Nov. 9 speech in Iowa. “When that money comes due and – this isn’t racist, so try it, try it anyway, this isn’t racist – but it’s going to be like slavery when that note is due. Right? We are going to be beholden to a foreign master.”

Also Read: Sarah Palin Rants Her Way Through ‘Kelly File’ Appearance (Video)

The governor defended those comments a week later to CNN’s Jake Tapper, stating, “I’m not one to be politically correct, evidently.”

Apparently Palin’s remarks were too much for Bashir to bear. In the closing segment on MSNBC’s “Martin Bashir” show Friday, ironically titled “Clear the Air,” he began by introducing Palin as “America’s resident dunce, scraping the barrel of her long-deceased mind.”

Bashir showed examples of the depths of depravity black slaves faced to “educate” Palin on what he felt was an inappropriate comparison.

Bashir shared with viewers the diary of a plantation overseer in Jamaica named Thomas Thistlewood. “In 1756, he records that a slave named Darby ‘catched eating kanes had him well flogged and pickled, then made Hector, another slave, shit in his mouth… ‘This became known as ‘Darby’s Dose,” he revealed.

Similarly, Bashir mentions an incident in 1756, this one in relation to a man named Punch. “Flogged punch well, and then washed and rubbed salt pickle, lime juice and bird pepper, made Negro Joe piss in his eyes and mouth.’”

“When Mrs. Palin invokes slavery, she doesn’t just prove her rank ignorance,” Bashir said. “She confirms that if anyone truly qualified for a dose of discipline… she would be the outstanding candidate.”

Also Read: ‘Daily Show’ Host John Oliver on Sarah Palin: ‘Wait a Second – We Can Just Ignore Her’

Bashir’s apology comes on the heels of Alec Baldwin‘s apology following his suspension from MSNBC’s “Up Late” after he admitted using a gay slur during a heated exchange with paparazzi.

Like Baldwin, Bashir deflected blame from his colleagues at MSNBC, who he says had nothing to do with the words he chose.

Watch the original clip here:

Comments