Don Lemon has 'no regrets' about CNN firing

Former CNN anchor Don Lemon says he has no regrets about the circumstances that led him to being fired from the cable news network on Monday after 17 years.

"I live my life with no regrets and whatever I did, I did, and I own," Lemon, 57, told The syndicated entertainment-news program "Extra" on Wednesday, speaking on the red carpet at the Time 100 Gala in Manhattan. "I don’t look back and I don’t want to change things in the past" other than, he said, bringing his late sister back. "You can't turn back time and you can't go in[to] the past. So, onward.”

The firing — which followed controversy over what many called a misogynistic remark about Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley in February, and a Variety report on April 5 detailing a history of poor behavior, including verbal abuse toward women — came as "a surprise," he said, "but life goes on. That’s behind me and we’ll see what happens in the future.”

Lemon, who keeps a weekend home in Sag Harbor with his fiancé, Tim Malone, said he was "excited for a new chapter" in his life and career. "Life is short, and … whatever life hands you, you have to bob and weave and do it. I didn’t think I would be at work … and I'd get a phone call that my sister had died. … I didn’t think that my dad would die young of diabetes. … So there are lots of things that come your way that are unexpected, but I’m a survivor. I come from strong, sturdy stock in Louisiana and [have] a lot of people who are rooting for me and who love me."

As for his immediate plans, "I’m going to spend my summer on the beach and on the boat and with my family and just chill out and then I’ll see what happens next. But I am fortunate enough to be in a position where I can do that," he said, adding, "I don’t have to rush to another job, even if I want another job. I do. I want to work again. But I am lucky enough to be in a position where I don't have to worry about those things."

KING OUT, BASH IN CNN veteran political correspondent Dana Bash will replace John King as host of the network's “Inside Politics” newscast, which airs at noon on weekdays, the network said Thursday. King will lead a new reporting project where he tells stories about voters in key battleground states, the network said. Bash, a 30-year CNN employee who will be replacing her former husband on “Inside Politics,” will continue as co-anchor with Jake Tapper of the weekend “State of the Union” program. -- AP