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• Vice President Dick Cheney apologized for an off-color joke that stereotyped West Virginians as being inbred.

  On June 2, 2008, Cheney responded to a question about his lineage by saying that he has "Cheneys on both sides" of his family and added "we don't even live in West Virginia."

• Fast Facts

  1. Speech date: Monday, June 2, 2008
  2. Place: National Press Club in Washington DC
  3. Comment thought to be stereotyping West Virginia an an incest prone state
  4. Cheney apologized

• What He Said

  The Vice President said we have "Cheneys on both sides" of the family, and added "we don't even live in West Virginia." He then added, "You can say those things when you're not running for reelection."

• Not So Funny

  However, the 'joke' was taken as an insult by people on both sides of the party lines, democrats and republicans.

  Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito, a republican from West Virginia said it was "disrespectful" and "certainly not funny."

  Democratic Governor Joe Manchin responded with "I truly cannot believe that any vice president of the United States . . . would make such a derogatory statement about my state, or any state for that matter."

• Cheney Apology for West Virginia Joke

  After the complaints, Cheney's spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride released an apology that stated "On reflection, he concluded that it was an inappropriate attempt at humor that he should not have made. The vice president apologizes to the people of West Virginia for the inappropriate remark."

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Dick Cheney | West Virginia

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