Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Craig Ferguson, host of CBS’ “Late Late Show,” announced he's leaving !
Craig Ferguson, host of CBS’ “Late Late Show,” announced Monday night he would be leaving at the end of the year, following news he would not be given the “Late Show” spot by departing host David Letterman. If you didn’t watch the show — or even if you did — you might not know that Ferguson, originally from Scotland, became a U.S. citizen in 2008. And his public statements about America and its exceptionalism are powerful — especially one speech in particular.
In a whirlwind January 2008 weekend, Ferguson became a U.S. citizen, got his pilot’s license and watched the New York Giants defeat the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. Six months later, he found himself in Boston at Faneuil Hall giving a Fourth of July speech. It remains one of my favorite speeches about America.
“There is a new and bigger freedom in America,” Ferguson said. “We believe all people are born equal, so the past, whatever that may be, does not have a stranglehold on the future.”
He went on: “America is not only the greatest country on earth, but also the finest expression of hope for the human race. It is nothing less than that. Sooner or later, sooner or later, America always does the right thing.”
He continued to talk about the power to “fire” our leaders, the honor of the military, his gratitude for his new country and why “being your best self” is the best expression of gratitude. It ended, unsurprisingly, with a standing ovation. Watch it all here:
Clippers Owner Donald Sterling Fined $2.5M and Banned for Life by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver
Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling will be banned for life and fined $2.5 million for racist comments, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announced Tuesday.
"We stand together in condemning Mr. Sterling's views," Silver said. "They simply have no place in the NBA."
The move comes after days of outrage at ugly words attributed to Sterling from a taped conversation with an ex-girlfriend.
NBC Sports' Donald Sterling Coverage
The comments, where the octogenarian owner seemed to say he didn't want his much-younger girlfriend hanging out with black people on Instagram or bringing them to games, were first reported by TMZ and then in another recording posted on the sports website Deadspin.
At the press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Commissioner Silver said an investigation had confirmed that the voice on the tapes and the "hateful opinions voiced" were those of Sterling.
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