MSNBC host offers tearful apology to Romneys
Updated 1:49 p.m., 1/4/2014
(CNN) - MSNBC host Melissa Harris-Perry made a tearful apology to Mitt Romney’s family on her show Saturday, after she and a panel poked fun at a photo of the former Republican presidential candidate with his wife and 21 grandchildren by zeroing in on his adopted African-American grandson.
"Whatever the intent was, the reality is that the segment proceeded in a way that was offensive, and showing the photo in that context, of that segment, was poor judgment. So without reservation or qualification, I apologize to the Romney family," said the anchor at the open of her show, "Melissa Harris-Perry."
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Harris-Perry became emotional as she went on to apologize to all "other families formed through transracial adoption," saying, "I am deeply sorry that we suggested that interracial families are in any way funny or deserving of ridicule."
She highlighted her own interracial background, as the daughter of an African-American man and a white Mormon woman. But, she said, families are always "off limits," and the Romneys' grandchildren should never have been a topic of discussion.
"Adults who enter into public life implicitly consent to having less privacy. But their families, and especially their children, should not be treated callously or thoughtlessly. My intention was not malicious, but I broke the ground rule that families are off limits, and for that I am sorry," she said.
Harris-Perry first apologized on Twitter and MSNBC's website Tuesday, offering a similar mea culpa "without reservation or qualification."
During the segment last Sunday, Harris-Perry asked a panel to come up with a caption for the Romney family photo, and two panelists made jokes about the infant standing out.
Actress Pia Glenn began singing lines from the song popularized by Sesame Street, "One of These Things Is Not Like the Others." Comedian Dean Obeidallah said the picture "really sums up the diversity of the Republican Party."
Obeidallah appears frequently on CNN and writes a regular opinion column for CNN.com.
Harris-Perry described the baby as "gorgeous" and joked that in 2040 he would marry North West, the daughter of Kanye West and Kim Kardashian.
"Can you imagine Mitt Romney and Kanye West as in-laws?" she said, to laughs.
Criticism was swift across social media, with prominent Republicans from Sarah Palin to former Sen. Scott Brown weighing in.
A spokeswoman for Romney told CNN he was on a family vacation this week and unavailable for comment. On Sunday, Romney will appear on “Fox News Sunday,” where he is likely to be asked about the episode.
MSNBC has been in some hot water recently after a handful of their hosts have made controversial comments. Alec Baldwin and the network parted ways in November after his homophobic outburst against photographers, and Martin Bashir resigned in December for his suggestion that Sarah Palin deserved graphic punishment for comparing U.S. foreign debt to slavery.
–CNN's Ashley Killough contributed to this report.
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@Gracie – watch the episode. They looked at the picture, said "which one of these things is not like the other" then laughed uncontrollably.
She's interracial with a Mormon mom? What's wrong with her....she needs sensitivity training or the blessings of her moms beliefs...and unemployment!
"Whatever the intent was, the reality is that the segment proceeded in a way that was offensive, and showing the photo in that context, of that segment, was poor judgment. So without reservation or qualification, I apologize to the Romney family," said the anchor at the open of her show, "Melissa Harris-Perry."
Nothing wrong with the photograph... it was the comments that followed that were offensive. Is Melissa, and many others, calling for segregation in interactions with each other. Presumably there were no American-Africans males available to step up for the child.
Only good thing about all of this... it shows that the fifty years should be considered as satisfying any "debt" for 200 hundred years of slavery in parts of the United States.
It is time to recognize the person and not the paint, the citizenship and not the old countries, and work together for the good of all and a better life for all.
When will Karl Rove apologize for his disgusting 2000 South Carolina Repubulican primary lie that John McCain had "fathered" a black child when McCain had adopted a child from Bangladesh? And likewise George Bush for permitting it?
Can someone tell me how this disingenuous person still has a job? Where is all the rage? This is why liberals are so horrible, hypocrites to the bone!!! Apology not accepted, you and your guests are "BULLIES" and all should be ashamed. Your apology is for one reason, you do not want to lose your job! Anyone who can make fun of these people and a small baby are just not good people, period! I am an Independent, neither dem or rep.....
My first foster family was white. I was born into the system; taken directly from the hospital and placed in a loving home of a different race. For the fist 7 years of my life I was in that family, which treated me as if we shared the same blood, as did the extended family and those surrounding. It was at the age of 7 that my then county case worker, a white lady, told the family that she didn't believe in interracial adoptions and was taking me out of the home. I was then placed in a facility until they could ship me like cattle all over the east where I have the most horrific experiences up until 18, where they still managed to continue though my status has changed. My point? I am as far away from a GOP supporter as one can be, but your party has nothing to do with your heart which is showcased in the adoption and acceptance of that child. I simply wanted to share this for anyone that questions the cry for her to be fired and set an example for the nation that racial discrimination from either shade is no longer tolerated.
It was all very funny until it jeopardized her job. Then it was tears... lol
Guess what? Melissa Harris Perry's MOTHER IS WHITE. Go ahead. Look it up. I will wait.
She comes from a wealthy family.
She grew up in a white suburb.
She and went to Princeton, with a bunch of privileged, white, trust fund babies. That's a demographic fact
She gets on Television and wants to play at being African American?
I lived with more African Americans than she did!
I wonder what her parents thought of her comments?
Wow, Shame on you, Ms. Perry. Don't apologize to us.
Go apologize to your mother.
"One of these things is not like the other – one of these things does not belong..." "Looks like the republican party" Yeah, I don't care what your perspective is, those are racist statements! Oh no a black baby with a white republican family... Oh no, what will the left do? They probably feel this is a good case for abortion. The glaring HYPOCRISY is staggering! Fire this woman!
The real shame is that we've become a nation of people who don't have control over our own mouths and need (it would seem) others to stand guard over what comes out!
There seems to be NO standard of moral decency, anymore! All of our boundaries have been torn down and some would say, Yay! but Scriptures say a city with out boundaries is OPEN FOR ATTACK!
We have no standards, no boundaries, we don't protect one another as citizens (not only by color)...we have sealed our own fate by allowing unrighteous people to rule over us. I'm not talking about in political office, I am talking about our daily lives! The PC crowd is making up rules as they go and have NO CLUE of it's outcome but we're allowing them to lead this nation...shame on us! :^\
She should be so totally ashamed of herself. She might be deeply sorry, but it's because she got caught....not because she's heartless and insensitive and a bully....picking on a small baby.....name-calling is what bullying is all about! She should be fired and the panelist should not be allowed on MSNBC again. If actions are not taken, MSNBC is as guilty as the others.
Well of course Mitt Romneys adopted son doesn't look like the rest of the family…
He's……ADOPTED!
God, the left is so STUPID!!!
Bye Bye... Melitha Harrith-Perry
From what I've read, Pia Glenn hould also be making a tearful apology. In my mind, she made the most vulgar of the comments (not to mention the vulgar irony of singing a song from Sesame Street, whit was integrated from the get-go). Is she still employed?
Treat the same way Paula Dean got treated.
You know Dean Obeidallah – he is the Muslim (nothing wrong with that) who writes and comments about "good (D)" Christians and "Bad(R)" Christians. These folks at MSNBC are the biggest bigots around.
She needs to be fired racism should not be tolerated by anyone
I am a mother of two beautiful adopt daughters that we received when the oldest was three months old and my youngest was five months old. they are now 28 and 25. My oldest is in the peace corps in Liberia she left her job at dod to do this. My youngest is working as the secretary at a physical therapy clinic....they are my family.....
Dear Melissa ~
Thank you for having the courage to apologize for an insensitive and wrong-headed comment. We all speak before we think – or feel – sometimes. This incident does not diminish your standing with me. Each time you speak, report, or comment, I learn something I didn't know before. I've been a fan since I first saw you on Rachel Maddow's show. I appreciate your perspective, your insight, and your original thinking. We all stumble and fall from time to time. But, as my dad used to say, just pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and keep going! It's all any of us can do.
It seems to me that liberals, who claim to be the least racist, are usually the most racist as they see race in everything! They have done more harm to race relations, divided us further and set us back as a nation in overcoming our past by keeping racism alive by constantly screaming, "racism" over every little thing. We're so weary of the race card being hauled out just to stop debate, discredit someone or change the narrative and all this nonsense makes a mockery of the seriousness of true racism. I'm glad she apologized because anyone who looked at this picture and saw anything but a large and happy FAMILY should really be ashamed of themselves.
Why are liberals so intolerant?
Typical of the "intellectual elite" of this nation. They just can't control themselves. All we need do is ask that if Rush Limbaugh would have made a similarly racist comment what CNN, NBC, MSNBC would have been saying and asking for. At a minimum they would be asking that Limbaugh's head be on a platter. We might even see a prosecution for a racial crime. The crocodile tears of some left-wing MSNBC announcer is simply not very convincing. By the way how did she ever make it through an Ivy League education. My Australian Shepherd is more African-American than this left-wing darling. She is sorry because she got caught by the political correctness police. Too bad.
Liberals be liberals. They just can't help themselves. When they are losing the argument based on merit (which is almost always), they invariably resort to accusations of "racism", personally attack the messenger, or engage in public displays of group reaffirmation of their shared ideology, assuming the vast majority agrees with their sadly misguided ideology. Sorry, I don't buy the "apology" at all. Mitt Romney was far too kind. This whole episode is a signature behavior of the left. But then what do you expect? They are of a mind that they have the right to do as they please with no consequences. MSNBC has had to issue so many apologies lately, they would seem to be in the same league as Toronto Mayor, Rob Ford. If they were serious, they would fire hosts who behave in this fashion – not simply trot them out to cry for the cameras. They won't, because it appears to be their culture. In this case, their guy, Barack Obama, won the election from Mitt Romney based on a huge health care lie. He has been a stunning failure at everything he's touched since taking the oath of office last year, and his cheerleaders at MSNBC have to be completely embarrassed by how competent, professional, and downright presidential the guy who lost looks by comparison. All they have left is to ridicule and name-call. Racism, and attacking family members – even children, is completely off-limits – unless you are a liberal. Disgusting and classless, they do not deserve Governor Romney's graciousness.
I never saw one actual tear.
What happened to freedom of speech that everyone was ranting about a couple of weeks ago when the duck dynasty father made all of his comments?