Mark Halperin, editor-at-large of Time magazine and senior political analyst for MSNBC, said on live TV Thursday morning that he thought President Barack Obama had been acting like a "dick."
Hours later, MSNBC suspended him, saying, "Mark Halperin's comments this morning were completely inappropriate and unacceptable. We apologize to the President, The White House and all of our viewers. We strive for a high level of discourse and comments like these have no place on our air. Therefore, Mark will be suspended indefinitely from his role as an analyst."
Halperin issued this statement in response: "I completely agree with everything in MSNBC's statement about my remark. I believe that the step they are taking in response is totally appropriate. Again, I want to offer a heartfelt and profound apology to the President, to my MSNBC colleagues, and to the viewers. My remark was unacceptable, and I deeply regret it.
As soon as Joe Scarborough, host of the MSNBC show "Morning Joe," the site of the gaffe, heard the remark, he called for what he thought was a seven-second delay button to be pushed. But apparently it had not been on, and you can see the result in the video below.
Halperin apologized. But this is the kind of incident that leads people to distrust the press. It suggests that folks like Halperin say one thing when the camera is on, and another when it is off.
Halperin is co-author of "Game Change," the best-seller about the 2008 presidential campaign that is now filming in Baltimore for HBO.
What do you think?