Joe Walsh Pulled Off The Air For Using Racial Slurs On Radio Show
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Former Republican Congressman Joe Walsh was kicked off the air in the middle of his radio show on Thursday, for using racial slurs during a discussion of the Washington Redskins controversy.
Walsh took to Twitter to vent his frustration after he was cut off in the middle of a discussion over the Redskins nickname, in the wake of the team being stripped of its trademarks, because federal law does not allow trademarks that might be disparaging to individuals or groups.
"Just got kicked off the air until further notice. Tried to have honest discussion about racist terms and management censored my language," Walsh tweeted.
Walsh said management at WIND-AM cut him off with commercials after he used racial slurs while discussing the Redskins nickname.
"If Redskins is just like the "n-word" why can I say Redskins on-air without being dumped out into a commercial?" Walsh tweeted.
By his own account, Walsh said he used a number of racial epithets while trying to debate whether the Redskins should be able to keep their nickname.
"Found out if I said Redskins or Cracker or Redneck Bible Thumper, I could stay on. But if I said N***** or Sp***, they cut me off."
You can see more of his tweets below.
Walsh, a Tea Party favorite, normally hosts his radio show from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on weeknights, but it was unclear if he'd be back on the air on Friday.
He served one term in Congress before he was defeated by current U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth in 2012.
Walsh is no stranger to controversy. While running against Duckworth, he criticized her for touting her military service, claiming it was all she talked about on the campaign trail. Duckworth lost her legs when the helicopter she was co-piloting was shot down by insurgents in Iraq in 2004.
Walsh also took heat after accusing Democrats of keeping African-Americans and Hispanics dependent on government in order to keep their vote.
"They want the Hispanic vote, they want Hispanics to be dependent upon government, just like they got African-Americans dependent upon government. That's their game. Jesse Jackson would be out of work if they weren't dependent upon government. There'd be no work for him," he said.
Walsh refused to apologize for those comments, and said he was trying to disparage the Democratic Party, not minorities.
