TED NUGENT - NUGENT SPARKS CONTROVERSY AT GOVERNOR'S GALA

NUGENT SPARKS CONTROVERSY AT GOVERNOR'S GALA

TED NUGENT's concert at an inaugural celebration for the Governor of Texas has sparked outrage after he shouted offensive remarks about immigrants and used guns as props on stage. Governor RICK PERRY invited the rocker to play at the black-tie gala Tuesday (16JAN07), but not all guests were pleased with his performance. According to witnesses, the 58-year-old appeared on stage wearing a cut-off T-shirt emblazoned with a Confederate flag and shouted offensive remarks about non-English speaking people. Nugent, a hunting and gun-rights advocate, also used machine guns as props during the performance. Perry's spokesman, ROBERT BLACK, downplayed the incident saying, "Ted Nugent is a good friend of the governor's. He asked him if he would play at the inaugural. He didn't put any stipulation on what he would play." The rocker's appearance has drawn fire from civil-rights leaders, including GARY BLEDSOE, the president of the Texas chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People. He adds, "Whenever someone sports the Confederate battle flag, many Texans will be offended, and rightly so, because of what it symbolises - the enslavement of African-Americans and more recently the symbol of hate groups and terrorists."