On the Bill Press Show Thursday morning, Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) blasted fellow South Carolina Rep. Joe Wilson (R) for heckling President Obama the previous evening.
Clyburn said Wilson's written apology was "the cowardly way to do it," and that the Republican lawmaker "ought to man up" and apologize to the president, his colleagues and the people of South Carolina from the well of the House of Representatives. Clyburn also suggested that Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) apologize to the president on behalf of his caucus.
"I don't think there's ever been this kind of venom or insult directed at the chief executive of the United States of America when he's standing in a joint session," Clyburn said.
As for Wilson himself, Clyburn said, "I share counties with him ... these are people who may have political conservatism but they do have good manners, and I do believe that the first sign of a good education is in fact good manners."
Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) also appeared on the show and agreed that Wilson's apology not "adequate," because apologizing wasn't punishment enough to discourage such rude antics in the future. Wilson, Specter argued, ought to be censured or rebuked for the outburst. "If you can do that to the president and get away with it, it's open season," Specter said.