Fox News host Bill O’Reilly has apologized for his comments about Congresswoman Maxine Waters and her “James Brown wig.”
The host of The O’Reilly Factor visited Fox & Friends on Tuesday and, after a video clip of Waters ran, said: “I didn’t hear a word she said. I was looking at the James Brown wig… I didn’t say she wasn’t attractive. I love James Brown. But it’s the same hair!” (Watch the clip below.)
Now O’Reilly has apologized for those comments: “As I have said many times, I respect Congresswoman Maxine Waters for being sincere in her beliefs. I said that again today on Fox & Friends, calling her ‘old-school.’ Unfortunately, I also made a jest about her hair, which was dumb. I apologize.”
After his reference to Waters’ hair on Fox & Friends, O’Reilly did say of her, “She’s a sincere individual. Whatever she says, she believes. She’s not a phony. And that’s old-school… We’re giving Maxine a break here. I love you, Maxine. I want to see you on the Factor. And when hell freezes over, I’m sure that will happen.”
UPDATE: O’Reilly apologized again for his comments about Waters on Tuesday night’s The O’Reilly Factor, saying, “This morning on Fox & Friends, I said in a simple jest that the [congresswoman]’s hair distracted me. Well, that was stupid. I apologize. It had no place in the conversation. It’s unnecessary to poke fun at anyone who’s speaking from the heart in the public arena, in my opinion.”