CNN’s Don Lemon Taking Monday Off Following Nikki Haley Remarks and Apology
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Don Lemon is taking Monday off following remarks he made about Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley that he later apologized for.
The CNN This Morning anchor decided to take Presidents Day off from work, according to a person familiar with the situation, who added that it was not pre-planned prior to the events of last week but was related to the holiday. Lemon also had the day off Friday, but that had been scheduled before Thursday’s on-air comments that landed him in hot water.
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On the episode in question, Lemon was discussing Haley’s comments that there should be a mental competency test for any politician over age 75. (Both President Joe Biden and fellow Republican candidate Donald Trump are over the age of 75.)
While discussing her remarks, Lemon said that the former South Carolina governor, who is 51, wasn’t “in her prime.”
“Nikki Haley isn’t in her prime, sorry,” Lemon said on Thursday’s show. “A woman is considered to be in their prime in 20s and 30s and maybe 40s. If you Google ‘when is a woman in her prime,’ it’ll say 20s, 30s and 40s.”
His comments visibly rankled co-anchor Poppy Harlow, but Lemon didn’t back down on his stance. Later that day, he offered a mea culpa on social media, tweeting that his comments were “inartful and irrelevant.”
On Friday, he called into a staff meeting to apologize.
The news of Lemon taking Monday off was first reported by Confider, which obtained an on-air lineup sent out by CNN management on Sunday afternoon with Lemon’s name absent.
