Joe Scarborough suspended from MSNBC for political donations

Popular "Moing Joe" co-host Joe Scarborough was suspended for two days without pay by MSNBC Friday for giving campaign cash to Republicans - a violation of company policy.

Scarborough is the second well-known MSNBC talking head to be suspended by the cable network this fall - Keith Olbermann was yanked off the air for two days for the same thing, except he gave to Democrats.

"Keep Calm and Carry On," Scarborough posted on his Twitter page shortly after the embarrassing news broke.

In a statement, Scarborough apologized to MSNBC "and to anyone who has been negatively affected by my actions."

"I recognize that I have a responsibility to honor the guidelines and conditions of my employment, and I regret that I failed to do so in this matter," he wrote.

MSNBC president Phil Griffin told Politico.com, which broke both the Scarborough and Olbermann stories, that he and Scarborough had a chat about political giving after Olbermann got in trouble.

"In my conversation with Joe two weeks ago, he did not recall these contributions," Griffin said.

Scarborough gave eight $500 contributions to Republican relatives and friends running for office going back to 2005, according to Politico.com.

All were running for state legislative seats in or around his hometown of Pensacola, Fla.

Scarborough said they were "not relevant to my work at MSNBC."

Olbermann gave money to three Democrats running in the November elections, including a $2,400 donation to an Arizona pol who appeared on his MSNBC show "Countdown."

Scarborough was a Republican congressman from Florida before embarking on a successful cable career. He and his "Moing Joe" co-host Mika Brzezinski recently launched a syndicated talk radio show called the Joe Scarborough Show on ABC Radio Network.

In a twist, Scarborough also writes a column for Politico.com. And when contacted by their reporters, he fessed up to three other $500 contributions to another friend running for county offices in Florida.