Don Lemon Absent From ‘CNN This Morning’ as Nikki Haley Fallout Continues

An on-air blunder. Don Lemon faced backlash after publicly dissing Nikki Haley on CNN — and was subsequently benched from multiple broadcasts.

The 56-year-old newscaster made headlines on February 16 after making a sexist comment about Haley’s age. While discussing the 51-year-old former governor of South Carolina’s bid for the presidency on CNN This Morning, Lemon claimed that Haley is past her “prime.”

“She says people, politicians are not in their prime,” he said, referring to the former United Nations Ambassador’s idea to implement “mental competency tests” for political leaders over the age of 75. “Nikki Haley is not in her prime, sorry. A woman is considered to be in her prime in her 20s, 30s and maybe her 40s.”

Cohost Poppy Harlow asked her colleague to clarify his stance, questioning whether he meant Haley was beyond her “prime for childbearing” or “prime for being president.”

Lemon proceeded to double down, responding: “If you Google, ‘when is a woman in her prime,’ it’ll say 20s, 30s, and 40s. … I’m not saying I agree with that so I think she has to be careful about saying that [politicians aren’t in their prime].”

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The comment quickly sparked controversy among viewers and political pundits — and Haley herself was quick to fire back at Lemon’s remark. “To be clear, I am NOT calling for competency tests for Sexist middle-aged CNN anchors; only for people who make our laws and are 75+,” she quipped via Twitter on February 16.

Lemon’s flub prompted a lively debate on social media. “Hey Ladies -@donlemon thinks women over 50 are past their prime! Let’s start #primetime and list some of the things we’ve accomplished in these glorious later years. I’ll start,” Patricia Heaton tweeted on February 17 as the former Today correspondent sat out from his CNN show.

Heaton, 64, went on to name some of her recent career highlights, from publishing her book Your Second Act: Inspiring Stories of Reinvention to producing the CBS sitcom Carol’s Second Act.

Lemon issued a statement via social media apologizing for his “irrelevant” commentary on Haley’s age, but he did not immediately return to the air. Sara Sidner filled in during the February 20 broadcast of the network’s morning show.

According to CNN, Lemon was given a chance to address his coworkers during the company’s February 17 editorial meeting. “I’m sorry that I said it,” the Transparent author noted to the staff. “And I certainly see why people found it completely misguided. When I make a mistake, I own it. And I own this one as well.”

Scroll down for everything to know about the controversy and its aftermath:

The Emmy winner raised eyebrows during the February 16 episode of CNN This Morning while the panel discussed Haley’s presidential campaign announcement. Lemon claimed he felt uncomfortable with the South Carolina native’s mention of “mental competency tests” for politicians.

“She says people, politicians are not in their prime,” he said. “Nikki Haley is not in her prime, sorry. A woman is considered to be in her prime in her 20s, 30s and maybe her 40s.”

“The reference I made to a woman’s ‘prime’ this morning was inartful and irrelevant, as colleagues and loved ones have pointed out, and I regret it,” Lemon tweeted on February 16 amid the backlash. “A woman’s age doesn’t define her either personally or professionally. I have countless women in my life who prove that every day.”

Haley shared the clip of Lemon’s diss via Twitter on February 16. “Liberals can’t stand the idea of having competency tests for older politicians to make sure they can do the job. BTW it’s always the liberals who are the most sexist,” she wrote.

After the journalist apologized, she weighed in once again. “To be clear, I am NOT calling for competency tests for Sexist middle-aged CNN anchors; only for people who make our laws and are 75+,” she tweeted.

The Louisiana native did not appear on the February 17 episode of CNN This Morning. During the February 20 broadcast, cohost Harlow told viewers, “Don has the day off.”

The network did not publicly comment on when Lemon would return.