NY State senator explains why he left Piers Morgan's show

(Click the headline for the video)

After an exchange Monday night between New York State Sen. Greg Ball (R) and CNN's Piers Morgan that teetered on indecent, Ball was asked by Morgan while heading into break to stay for an extra segment.

"I would love..." Ball said, seeming to indicate he would. But when the program resumed after commercials, he was gone.

"I wanted to be back with Sen. Greg Ball from New York," Morgan said into the camera. "Unfortunately, he has left the building. Rather surprising for a man who described himself as a great red-blooded American who was going to hand me my British ass. Anyway, he has shown cowardice in the face of the great ongoing debate and has left."

Morgan and Ball had been discussing a recent tweet by Ball in which he called for the torture of one of the Boston bombing suspects "to save more lives."

"We were pre-scheduled with Fox News's Hannity the same hour," Ball explained to TheBlaze. "CNN called my communications director and asked that we please do both shows. The CNN staff was very professional and we agreed to accommodate."

Indeed, Ball did sit in for a segment on Hannity to discuss his tweet immediately after his appearance on CNN. Both shows are shot live.

"The staff and Morgan were clearly told I had a 9:40 p.m. hit on Hannity, making anything beyond 9:30 on CNN impossible," Ball continued. "As those who know Manhattan, Fox News headquarters is several blocks away through mad traffic. As is, and leaving as agreed to at the close of my segment, we made it to Hannity with only a minute to spare. Piers is a snake for suggesting otherwise, for I personally explained this again, at break. His staff, however, is very professional."

We've requested comment from CNN.