In a new interview with the Wall Street Journal, MSNBC's Rev. Al Sharpton, host of PoliticsNation, opened up on his dramatic (and very impressive) weight loss. Some interesting new tidbits from the article:
- Sharpton lost over 100 pounds: Rev. weighed 300 pounds from the late '80s through the '90s. He lost 30 pounds in 2001 while jailed for protesting the U.S. Navy bombing exercises on the island of Vieques, Puerto Rico, and fasted nearly 40 days.
- What President Clinton told him about his weight: "I remember seeing Bill Clinton when I first lost weight and he told me, 'Al, you will feel better and you won't need as much sleep.' He was right. I used to need six or seven hours and now I need four or five and am much more mentally alert."
- President Obama’s pardon to splurge on Thanksgiving: President Barack Obama recently urged Rev. Sharpton to "go ahead and let loose a bit on Thanksgiving," Rev. Sharpton says. His response: "I will not break my diet even with a presidential pardon." (Check out more from their exchange here)
- MSNBC's Morning Joe Fires Him Up: Rev. Sharpton watches MSNBC's "Morning Joe," while working out. He says host Joe Scarborough is his morning inspiration. "He just hits my spot and gets me so angry and ready to go to work. While I'm on the bike or running I think of my counter arguments to his conservative ones," he says. (Bonus - check out Joe's response to the article in the clip from Morning Joe this morning)
- When Rev. Met Kanye West: When he's not watching Morning Joe, Rev. Sharpton listens to whatever his daughters put on his iPod. "My youngest downloaded 'Jesus Walks' by Kanye West. When I met Kanye, he was shocked that I knew the song."
What did the Morning Joe crew have to say about the article? Check out Rev. Sharpton on the show this morning:
Morning Joe crew reacts to Rev. Sharpton's WSJ article
Follow Rev. Sharpton on twitter at @thereval
