Minnesota House majority leader Matt Dean has issued a halfhearted apology to fantasy author Neil Gaiman for calling him a “pencil-necked little weasel who stole $45,000 from the state of Minnesota.”

Earlier this week, Dean criticized Minnesota’s House Legacy Funding Division for paying Gaiman to appear at a speaking engagement.

Dean told Minnesota Public Radio: “[My mom] was very angry this morning and always taught me to not be a name caller. And I shouldn’t have done it, and I apologize.”  Dean still insisted that the author should have “donated his time” to the patrons of the Stillwater Library.

Read more

Republican House majority leader Matt Dean publicly criticized Minnesota’s House Legacy Funding Division for paying Neil Gaiman (pictured, via) for a speaking engagement.  The legislator called the author  “pencil-necked little weasel who stole $45,000 from the state of Minnesota.”

According to the StarTribune, Republican representative Dean Urdahl proposed a new amendment that would make Minnesota-based cultural groups compete for funding.

Gaiman responded with this tweet: “Sad & funny. Minnesota Republicans have a ‘hate’ list. Like Nixon did. I’m on it. They also don’t like capitalism.” He also pointed to a blog entry about “political football” over the speaking engagement in question.