Imus: 'Hillary Clinton is Still Satan'

I'm live-blogging Don Imus's first show on WABC, or at least the first couple hours of it. The guest lineup includes Doris Kearns Goodwin, Chris Dodd and John McCain (!). And the black cast member is apparently Karith Foster, a female comedian from Texas. (Can it be a coincidence that she's wearing a cowboy hat on her site?)

But first: Imus knew he had to address the "napppy-headed hos" episode upfront, and he did it with admirable directness.

"As most of you know, I haven't talked to anyone and didn't see any point in going on some kind of Larry King and offer a bunch of lame excuses for making a reprehensible remark about innocent people who didn't deserve to be made fun of," he said.

"I think what happened is about what should've happened. You don't get to decide, nor should you, how the news media is going to treat a remark you made of the kind of remark I made."

His forbearing posture even extended to the man who fired him: "Les Moonves could not have been more honorable and more straightforward and more decent and honest in dealing with me."

Of the meeting where he personally apologized to the Rutgers basketball players he'd offended, Imus said, "I don't know if it's melodramatic to describe it as a life-changing experience but it's pretty close."

He concluded the segment with a promise:

"I will never say anything in my lifetime that will make any of these young women at Rutgers regret or feel foolish that they forgave me. And no one else will say anything on my program that will make anyone feel I didn't deserve a second chance."

Well, actually, he concluded it with this applause line:

"Dick Cheney is still a war criminal. Hillary Clinton is still Satan. And I'm back on the radio!"