CNN anchor Don Lemon expressed concern on Tuesday that violent protesters could get President Donald Trump reelected.
The video: Lemon made the remarks to his fellow CNN anchor Chris Cuomo during live coverage of the second night of the Republican National Convention.
Referring to riots in Kenosha, Wisconsin, this week following a local police shooting of a black man, Lemon said it was time for Democrats to denounce the violence.
- “I think this is a blind spot for Democrats. I think Democrats are ignoring this problem or hoping that it will go away. And it’s not going to go away,” he said.
- Lemon said Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden seems to be “afraid” to address the rioting, but he needs to “do a speech” blaming President Donald Trump for the violence and promising to end it while enacting police reform if elected.
- “But guess what?” Lemon said. “The rioting has to stop. Chris, as you know and I know it’s showing up in the polling. It’s showing up in focus groups. It is the only thing — it is the only thing right now that is sticking.”
Protests against racism and policing in many U.S. cities have been accompanied by rioting, looting and spikes in violent crime.
The reaction: Many conservative commentators mocked Lemon for belatedly realizing rioting is bad — and for only citing political considerations.
Flashback: Lemon — along with Cuomo and many other media figures — has previously suggested rioting is an understandable response by black Americans to racism.
- On-air in June, Leon said “when people get tired and if no one listens, then it fuels insurrection, do you understand what I’m saying?”
- “Yes,” Cuomo replied.
Democrats vs. rioters: During the RNC, President Donald Trump and the GOP have stepped up their attacks on Biden and the Democrats for indulging the protesters at the expense of law and order.
- Biden, meanwhile, has sought to gently draw a line between protesters and rioters, with his campaign on Tuesday saying the violence in Kenosha is not “right and necessary.”
The riots: A Pew Research Center poll published earlier this month found that violent crime is now a top issue for American voters in the 2020 election.
- Sarah Longwell, publisher of The Bulwark and chief executive officer of a Washington D.C.-based communications firm, tweeted on Monday that Americans’ attitudes toward the protesters are shifting.
- “The ongoing violence in American cities is an increasing vulnerability for Dems. It’s popping in my focus groups as well. Americans were originally on the side of protesters. But as the unrest continues, attitudes are shifting. It’s the one R talking point starting to stick,” she said.
