ESPN drops Hank Williams Jr. over Hitler comment

NEW YORK, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- ESPN excluded its normal musical opening to "Monday Night Football" this week after Hank Williams Jr. compared President Barack Obama to Adolf Hitler.

Williams, appearing Monday on Fox News Channels' "Fox & Friends," said a so-called golf summit -- in which Obama and House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, discussed political matters during a round of golf -- "would be "like Hitler playing golf with (Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin) Netanyahu."

"They're the enemy!" Williams said. "Obama! And (Vice President Joe) Biden!"

In a statement, ESPN said its "Monday Night Football" telecast of the Indianapolis Colts-Tampa Bay Buccaneers game at Tampa would not include the customary opening segment that features Williams singing "are you ready for some football."

"While Hank Williams Jr. is not an ESPN employee, we recognize he is closely linked to our company through the opening to Monday Night Football," the statement said. "We are extremely disappointed with his comments, and as a result have decided to pull the open from tonight's telecast."

The telecast went on without the familiar opening, and without comment on the decision to exclude it.

Williams, 62, told the celebrity news Web site TMZ.com his remarks were "misunderstood."

"Some of us have strong opinions and are often misunderstood," he said. "My analogy was extreme -- but it was to make a point. I was simply trying to explain how stupid it seemed to me -- how ludicrous that pairing was.

"They're polar opposites and it made no sense. They don't see eye-to-eye and never will. I have always respected the office of the President."

Williams has expressed interest in running for the U.S. Senate from Tennessee in 2012, USA Today reported.