Minnesota TV reporter fired after wearing 'MAGA' hat while covering Trump rally

A local TV reporter in Rochester, Minnesota, has been fired for political bias after he wore a “Make America Great Again” hat while covering a rally for President Donald Trump.

The Associated Press reported that James Bunner was a multimedia journalist for KTTC-TV. He was covering a Trump rally in Rochester, Minnesota, Thursday while wearing the hat and a KTTC-branded jacket.

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BuzzFeed News reported that Mark Vancleave, a video journalist for The Star Tribune, took a photo of Bunner in the jacket and hat and posted it on Twitter.

KTTC News Director Noel Sederstrom said Bunner was fired Friday.

"He violated our policy so he's no longer with us," Sederstrom told BuzzFeed News. "We don't allow our people to wear campaign clothing while on assignment."

The Post Bulletin reported that the campaign for Republican secretary of state candidate John Howe offered Bunner a job.

Howe told the Post Bulletin Saturday that he would be speaking with Bunner about adding him to campaign staff.

“Maybe he'll be a good fit, and maybe he won’t,” Howe said. “But to lose your job over some apparel seems a little harsh.”

"They've got standards, as all media businesses do, but it just seemed a little bit over the top for us," Howe campaign manager Tim Droogsma told the Post Bulletin.

Droogsma said Bunner would be in a communications role should he accept the job.

Bunner has not publicly commented on the job offer or his firing.

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