Update: Bernhard Says Palin Gang-Rape Taunt Is Part of 'Much Larger, Nuanced' Piece

Sandra Bernhard has responded to the unfolding controversy over her gang-rape warning to Sarah Palin in her D.C. theater show. So have Democrats: Ari Roth on the Theatre J blog reports "even some democrats right here in DC are upset by the excerpts they’ve read." Bernhard told the New York Daily News it was part of a "much larger, nuanced" whole:

The Republican V.P. nom would be "gang-raped by my big black brothers" if she enters Manhattan, Bernhard said. Palin is said to be making a campaign stop in New York next week.

"[The gang rape comment] is part of a much larger, nuanced, and yes, provocative (that's what I do) piece from my show about racism, freedom, women's rights and the extreme views of Governor Sarah Palin, a woman who doesn't believe that other women should have the right to choose," Bernhard told the Daily News today.

"Women deserve better," she continued. "I certainly wish Governor Palin no harm. I'd just like her to explain to me how she can hold such outrageous views -- and then go back to Alaska."