A professional rodeo clown who bills himself as a good, clean comedian stunned audience members when he dropped a racist Michelle Obama joke in their unsuspecting laps, Gawker is reporting. Mike Hayhurst — who hails from Barstow, California — decided it was time to work some political humor into the festivities at the annual Creston Classic Rodeo. Unfortunately for those in attendance, spectators were subjected to a horribly racist statement that no one thought was funny.
Creston Classic Rodeo board member Mike Barrett explained that, because of his inappropriate behavior, Hayhurst may have burned his bridges at the event. “We probably won’t be using his services in the future,” Barrett explained to the San Luis Obispo Tribune .
Everything was going well for the rodeo clown, that is, until Hayhurst decided to tell a joke to the audience. The bit began with the clown stating that Playboy had offered Mitt Romney’s wife a substantial sum of money to pose nude in the magazine. For someone who claims to deliver “good clean family comedy always,” the guy was off to a rough start.
However, things got really uncomfortable when Hayhurst delivered the punchline. “The White House is upset about it because ‘National Geographic’ only offered Michelle Obama $50 to pose for them,” he quipped. If the guy was expecting a standing ovation for his joke, he didn’t get one.
Dona Wilson, one of the spectators in attendance, said that nobody was impressed with the rodeo clown’s offensive joke. “I was really appalled and the people around me were really appalled,” she said. “He was acting like we were buying into his bigotry and we weren’t.”
According to the San Luis Obispo Tribune , the rodeo clown wasn’t available for comment due to head injuries he received after being tossed into the air by a bull. Hayhurst is reportedly receiving treatment for his wounds at an area hospital.