Ellington

Gov. Haley Barbour accepted the resignation yesterday of Press Secretary Dan Turner. Turner's resignation comes after a Politico blog entry about daily e-mails Turner sent out to the governor's staff containing offensive jokes.

Politico reported that Friday's staff e-mail, obtained by the news outlet, included jokes about Tsunami victims in Japan and Janet Reno's gender:

Otis Redding posthumously received a gold record for his single, "(Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay". (Not a big hit in Japan right now.)

In 1993, Janet Reno was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate to become the first female attorney general. (It took longer to confirm her gender than to confirm her law license.)

Barbour did not specify the reasons for Turner's resignation. Deputy Press Secretary Laura Hipp will now serve as Barbour's press secretary.