Apology accepted, but now we must move on from Hank Williams Jr.
The country singer was just so besides himself with anger that he compared the president to Adolf Hitler, both disrespecting the commander in chief and belittling the magnitude of Hitler's crimes all in one shot.
He did so because of his passion—at least that is what he has issued in his apology. Williams finally did the right thing and apologized for his ill-advised statement made on Monday's Fox & Friends appearance.
Williams released this apology on his Facebook page Tuesday.
I have always been very passionate about Politics and Sports and this time it got the Best or Worst of me. The thought of the Leaders of both Parties Jukin and High Fiven on a Golf course, while so many Families are Struggling to get by simply made me Boil over and make a Dumb statement and I am very Sorry if it Offended anyone. I would like to Thank all my supporters. This was Not written by some Publicist. -- Hank Williams Jr
For ESPN's part, the network banned the famous intro Williams penned in lieu of the national anthem Monday night.
The ban may not be a permanent one. The network released their own statement that read:
While Hank Williams, Jr. is not an ESPN employee, we recognize that he is closely linked to our company through the open to Monday Night Football. We are extremely disappointed with his comments, and as a result we have decided to pull the open from tonight's telecast.
An ESPN report cited the network had no further comment on what the status was with Williams and his song "All My Rowdy Friends" opening the telecast from here on out.
It is very likely that ESPN could go back to Williams' intro after some time has passed. I am not here to vilify the singer any further.
This is a country that feeds on redemption and apologies. Every last one of us should accept his sorrow and move on. That being said, ESPN would do well to reinvent the telecast anew.
Nothing lasts forever, and Williams has given us a memorable intro that we will never forget, but it is time to turn the page.
A good portion of Americans still have a bad taste in their mouths from these comments. Many of them will never get over what was said.
The golf game that Williams became so enraged over happened in June. That is an important part that should be noted.
He had several months to get over a moment of bipartisanship that would otherwise be celebrated. Instead, it was a moment that stuck with Williams for months, stewing in him every night until he had to release his thought on Monday's program.
It is that kind of radical passion that leaves me wondering if we have heard the last of Williams and his political thought.
In a CNN report, Williams was reported to have been critical of President Obama's patriotism before. During the 2008 campaign, he stated, "you know, I'm usually at Monday Night Football tonight, but Colorado, this is a lot more important tonight. Join me now in our national—you know, that song that, uh, Mr. Obama's not real crazy about, we're singing it right now."
Williams has the right to go into politics as he says he would like to. But that just means ESPN should ready another artist to take his place permanently.
I will always remember the MNF intro fondly, but it is time for us to move on without Hank Williams Jr.
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