Television commentator Martin Bashir has been suspended for remarks he made about former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin,
Politico reports.
But MSNBC, the cable news channel that airs
Bashir's self-titled program, says he is "on vacation."
Bashir was off last week during Thanksgiving, but did not return to the air Monday. Guest host Joy Reid sat in for him.
Politico's Dylan Byers reported that network sources had told him Bashir was under temporary suspension after making crude remarks about Palin on his show Nov. 15. After a weekend of criticism, Bashir led his Nov. 18 show with
an apology.
Palin accepted the apology, but conservatives demanded some form of punishment for Bashir, especially after the cable channel handed down a two-week suspension to host Alec Baldwin for making a gay slur to a photographer who approached his wife and baby.
Baldwin joined that call, saying his own remarks were made off-the-cuff and not on the air, while Bashir's were scripted and delivered during his program.
Baldwin's show has since been canceled. He denies using a gay slur.
MSNBC spokeswoman Lauren Skowronski would not confirm to Politico Bashir's suspension, saying in an email, "He's still out on vacation." She did not respond to a question about when Bashir would return.
Bashir's original remarks were a response to Palin's comparing the United States' debt to China to slavery. He called her a "world-class idiot" before describing the inhumane treatment a certain slave owner had used and suggesting Palin be given a dose of the same treatment.
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