Don Lemon to Extra on CNN exit: ‘I don’t have to rush to another job, even if I want another job

Former CNN host Don Lemon said he doesn’t “have to rush to another job” after his abrupt exit from the network and said he’s “excited for a new chapter.”

“I’m gonna spend my summer on the beach and on the boat, and with my family. Just chill out and then I’ll see what happens next, but I’m fortunate enough to be in a position where I can do that,” Lemon told Extra TV’s Tommy DiDario.

Lemon said Monday that his agent had informed him he’d been fired by CNN after 17 years with the network. CNN confirmed Lemon’s departure but disputed some parts in the longtime host’s Twitter announcement, asserting that Lemon was offered a chance to meet with management.

“I have time,” Lemon told Extra TV. “I don’t have to rush to another job, even if I want another job.” He added that he’s “excited for a new chapter” and called himself “a survivor.”

Parting ways with CNN was a “surprise,” he said, but he stressed that “that’s behind me and we’ll see what happens in the future.”

“I live my life with no regrets and whatever I did, I did, I owned,” Lemon said, when asked if he would do anything differently.

Lemon came under fire earlier this year for controversial comments on “CNN This Morning” about women’s “prime,” referencing presidential candidate and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R).