(FILES): This January 22, 2008 file photo shows the Rev. Jesse Jackson with his Rainbow/PUSH Coalition during a rally to "Save Our Homes: Restructure Loans, Don't Repossess Homes" outside the US Housing and Urban Development Department in Washington, DC. Civil rights leader Jackson apologized on June 9, 2008 to Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama for making a "crude" remark about him, which was picked up by a live television microphone. Jackson said the Fox News microphone picked up his disparaging remarks about the way Obama, vying to be America's first black president, addresses the African American community. "For any harm or hurt that this hot mic private conversation may have caused, I apologize," Jackson said in a statement, which did not specify the exact remark. "My support for Senator Obama?s campaign is wide, deep and unequivocal. I cherish this redemptive and historical moment. Jackson, 66, is a former associate of assassinated civil rights leader Martin Luther King, and made his own unsuccessful runs for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988. AFP PHOTO / FILES / Tim SLOAN