CNN CEO Chris Licht said in a statement that the network wishes him well and will cheer him on as he pursues future endeavors, echoing what he wrote in an email to CNN staffers obtained by USA TODAY.

“CNN and Don have parted ways,” the network said in the statement on Monday. “Don will forever be a part of the CNN family, and we thank him for his contributions over the past 17 years. We wish him well and will be cheering him on in his future endeavors.”

Lemon, one of the network’s most recognizable stars, had been under scrutiny since an uproar over on-air remarks he made about women and aging in February.

If your recall, Lemon asserted on-air that Nikki Haley, the 51-year-old Republican presidential candidate, “isn’t in her prime, sorry,” adding, “A woman is considered to be in her prime in her 20s and 30s and maybe 40s.” He also dismissed the objections of his female co-hosts by responding, “I’m just saying what the facts are — Google it.”

Lemon later apologized to the CNN newsroom and agreed to a corporate training program to address his on-air behavior but apparently the network had other plans.