Halperin suspended for Obama remark

WASHINGTON, June 30 (UPI) -- MSNBC said it has suspended indefinitely analyst Mark Halperin, who Thursday called U.S. President Barack Obama "kind of a dick" on the air.

Halperin smiled when he made the remark on the cable network's "Morning Joe" program as the other panelists laughed, egged him on and promised they would hit the censor button as he characterized how the president criticized Republican lawmakers the day before.

"Are we on the 7-second delay thing? I wanted to characterize how I thought the president behaved. I think he was kind of a dick yesterday," Halperin said. "I think he was posturing."

"Mark Halperin's comments this morning were completely inappropriate and unacceptable. We apologize to the president, the White House and all of our viewers," MSNBC said in a statement. "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 a separate statement apologizing for his comment.

"I completely agree with everything in MSNBC's statement about my remark," he said. "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."