Republican says if Imus goes, others should too

JOHNSTON, Iowa (Reuters) - Republican presidential contender Mike Huckabee said on Friday that if broadcaster Don Imus could lose his job for making racist remarks then other media members should lose their jobs too.

Huckabee, former governor of Arkansas and a guest on the Imus show, said the Imus comments were wrong and inexcusable but not unprecedented in an industry that thrives on controversial personalities and quotes.

The Imus show was canceled by CBS and MSNBC after he made racist slurs against a women's basketball team, but Huckabee drew comparisons with other controversial television figures like Rosie O'Donnell of "The View" and Bill Maher of HBO.

"I think if Imus is going to get fired, then there's a number of other people who need to go out the door," Huckabee told Radio Iowa. "Rosie's probably's got to go. Bill Maher has to go. Gosh, half of television and talk radio has to go."

Huckabee, who has registered in the low single digits in polls in a crowded 2008 Republican presidential race, said Imus "absolutely had to apologize" but "the toughest penalty was having to sit down for three hours and face those young ladies and look them in the eye and to tell them he was sorry."

He said the marketplace, including ratings for his show and sponsors, should have decided the fate of Imus. Some advertisers had pulled out of the show before it was canceled.

Firing the broadcaster raised free speech issues, he said.

"There's a side of me that gets a little concerned. Where does that stop?" he said.

He also questioned why the decision to pull the plug on Imus came after pressure from black activists Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson.

"Perhaps what's most offensive is that of all the people to lead the charge, here are two people who have a long history of making outrageous statements and getting away with it," Huckabee said. "I don't understand that."

Huckabee was in Iowa, which holds the first nominating contest of the 2008 race, for a campaign swing and an appearance on Saturday at a Republican Party dinner.