Fox News Suspends Contributor For 'Cotton-Picking' Comment

David Bossie, Ed Henry, Joel Payne

Fox News contributor and former Trump campaign official David Bossie has been suspended two weeks by the network over a racist remark he made during a heated debate on Fox & Friends, according to philly.com.

David Bossie, who was deputy chairman of President Trump’s campaign and is a Fox News contributor, told Democratic strategist Joel Payne “you’re out of your cotton-picking mind” during a discussion Sunday about the president’s “zero-tolerance” border policy, which has led to more than 2,300 children — some as young as infants — being separated from their parents at the Mexican border.

Payne, who is black, immediately took offense to Bossie’s racially charged statement. “Cotton-picking mind? Well, let me tell you something. I’ve got some relatives who picked cotton. And I’m not going to sit here and allow you to attack me like that on TV.”

The conservative activist showed no immediate regret over the comment but later apologized. On air, Bossie blasted Payne’s reaction as “ridiculous” and “outrageous.”

Immediately following the segment, Fox & Friends guest host Ed Henry, the network’s chief national correspondent, told viewers that Bossie’s comments were “obviously offensive.”

“I just want to address what happened in that debate. It clearly offended Joel Payne. It offended many others,” Henry said. “I want to make clear that Fox News and this show, myself, we don’t agree with that particular phrase. It was obviously offensive.”