Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley fired back at a CNN anchor over his comments that she was past her prime.
Lemon made the comments after the former South Carolina governor announced that she was running for president on Tuesday and criticized the advanced age of the other candidates.
“This whole talk about age makes me uncomfortable. I think it’s the wrong road to go down,” he said to the other co-hosts on “CNN This Morning.”
“She says people, you know, politicians are suddenly not in their prime. Nikki Haley isn’t in her prime. Sorry, when a woman is in their prime in 20s and 30s and maybe 40s,” said Lemon, who is 56 years old himself.
Haley, who is 51 years old, fired back with a jab at Lemon.
“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.
Lemon apologized for the comments in a statement on social media.
“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,” he tweeted.
“A woman’s age doesn’t define her either personally or professionally. I have countless women in my life who prove that every day,” he added.
“CNN This Morning” with Don Lemon, Poppy Harlow, and Kaitlan Collins has garnered some of the worst ratings for CNN in its short time on air. Lemon reportedly outraged Harlow and Collins with his previous comments opposing pay for the U.S. Women’s soccer team equal to that of the more popular men’s soccer team.
“We live in a capitalist society, and if people can make money off whatever it is, they are going to exploit it,” Lemon said to an objection from Harlow.
“And there is a reason, and I’m sure it’s part of what you are saying and it’s part of what you’re saying, and these are conversations that we need to have,” he added, “but i just think we are lying to ourselves if we believe that someone cannot sit here and speak the truth to what we’re talking about.”
President Biden, who is expected to run for reelection in 2024, is 80 years old, while former President Donald Trump, who announced his election campaign in November, is 76 years old.
Here’s the video of Haley’s campaign announcement:
Nikki Haley shares top priorities for 2024 campaignwww.youtube.com
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