Wolf Blitzer and Anderson Cooper will be doing one on ones with the final five presidential candidates tonight at 8PM ET.
Final Five On CNN Tonight
CNN: Discussion Of Race Relations Gets Tense Between Van Jones & Jeffrey Lord
I was watching CNN last night when this really powerful discussion occurred between former Obama staffer Van Jones and former Reagan staffer/Donald Trump supporter Jeffrey Lord about race, the Ku Klux Klan and the Democratic Party.
The exchange must have gone on for at least ten minutes, at times getting very heated.
Here’s just an excerpt via the Washington Post:
Though Jones allowed that pundits had not “respected” Trump voters, he said that “there is a dark underside here…. He is whipping up and tapping into and pushing buttons that are very, very frightening to me and frightening to a lot of people.” He added: When Trump, who declined to denounce the KKK in an interview Sunday before doing so on Twitter, is “playing funny with the Klan, that is not cool” — especially given the candidate’s outspoken position on Muslim extremists.
“I know this man, when he gets passionate about terrorism,” Jones said of Trump. “I know how he talks about terrorism. The Klan is a terrorist organization.”
Lord, citing the KKK’s historic connection with the Democratic Party, turned up the temperature. “A leftist terrorist organization,” he said.
Jones started to look a little angry.
“We’re not going to play that game,” Jones said.
Lord: “We are going to understand history.”
Jones: “No, you need to take a serious look at the fact that this man is playing fast and loose…. When you talk about terrorism, he gets passionate. He says, ‘No, this is wrong.’ But when you talk about the Klan, ‘Oh, I don’t know, I don’t know.’”
Democratic Candidates On CNN Townhall Tonight
CNN hosts a townhall discussion with both Democratic presidential nominees, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton & Sen. Bernie Sanders, tonight at 8pmET/5pmPT.
Personally, I like the townhall format more than a debate scenario. Less attacking each other and the questions come from the voters, which I find more interesting.
Early on some folks called for more debates than the original six announced. I wasn’t crazy about that idea as I think you get in six debates about all the interchange between candidates you need. Of course, three more debates were eventually added to the schedule.
But in a townhall setting, real every day Americans get to directly ask the candidates what they care about.
#Better
Unhinged Donald Trump Rants On CNN Regarding Banning All Muslims From Entering America
After yesterday’s announcement by Donald Trump that he intends to halt all Muslims from entering the United States, the Trumpster is making the rounds via phone today defending what would be his controversial (and divisive) approach to handling world affairs.
Calling into CNN’s “New Day,” Trump got into a heated exchange with host Chris Cuomo.
Via Mediaite:
Cuomo opened up the interview by noting how Trump’s idea is the latest in a series of positions leading to serious division and condemnation on both sides of the political spectrum. To this, Trump claimed the attacks in San Bernardino and Paris are proof that Muslims are trying to infiltrate and destroy America, and that “we have no choice but to do exactly what I said until our country’s representatives can figure out what the hell is going on.”
Cuomo reiterated that the idea of rejecting an entire religion is the antithesis of American values and freedoms, and pushed back saying “you’re acting out of fear, not making us look strong, and rejecting what America is all about.”
Later in the segment, Trump made a claim about intelligence reports to which Cuomo replied, “Our security network is the best in the world. If you ask people who are in the business of keeping us safe, they think the idea of banning Muslims does nothing to help and everything to hurt. They’re the experts, that’s what they say. They think the idea is stupid.”
I should point out that EVERY Republican White House hopeful denounced the idea of slamming the door on all Muslims yesterday. And intelligence/security experts all day long agreed the policy would hurt the United States, not help it.
Cuomo rocked this.
You can watch the entire segment below.
Donald Trump Wants CNN To Give Him $5 Million To Appear At Next GOP Debate
Donald Trump, currently falling in presidential polls, says he wants CNN to pony up $5 million in order for him to appear at the next GOP debate.
From the Washington Post:
Donald Trump has threatened to charge CNN $5 million for his appearance in the next Republican presidential debate, which the network will host on Dec. 15 in Las Vegas.
“How about we do this for CNN: I won’t do the debate unless they pay me five million dollars, all of which money goes to the wounded warriors or goes to vets?” Trump said Monday night to a crowd of about 5,500 at a rally in this central Georgia town, located about 85 miles south of Atlanta. “I would love to do that.”
Donald Trump Picks A Fight On CNN Over Network’s “Incompetent” Coverage
Donald Trump, speaking with CNN’s Chris Cuomo this morning, had a virtual meltdown over his media coverage as he sees his poll numbers dropping to number two as Dr. Ben Carson’s numbers rise.
From The Hill:
Moments into his more than 20-minute interview on CNN’s “New Day,” Trump offered a broadside against a CNN reporter who covered his book signing in New York the previous day.
“Sara Murray didn’t report it very well because she never flips the camera to show the lines. I think she’s absolutely terrible, your reporter,” Trump told host Chris Cuomo.
“Either she’s a very unemotional person or she’s not a very good reporter,” Trump continued, adding later, “Maybe she’s a low-key individual and doesn’t believe in showing the crowds.”
“I don’t know if that’s because she is incompetent, or she doesn’t like me or maybe she’s given instructions from up above. Who knows. I don’t really care,” Trump said.
Jake Tapper To Marco Rubio: “You’re The Candidate Of Yesterday” On Marriage Equality
Speaking to newly announced GOP candidate for 2016 presidential nomination, Sen. Marco Rubio attempts to parse his position on same-sex marriage with young Republican voters:
“You are casting yourself as a candidate of a new generation, but there is an issue where you are very out of step with younger voters,” Tapper said, citing a Pew poll that showed 61% of young Republicans are in favor of same-sex marriage.
“On that issue, same-sex marriage, Senator, you’re the candidate of yesterday,” Tapper declared.
Rubio began by offering up the same defense that Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has been known to use, saying that gay marriage is a “state issue” that he would not have to address as president.
Also, he added, “I think there’s still a significant number of Americans that believe that the definition of marriage should be that of one man and one woman, as it has been for thousands of years.”
“But they’re a minority,” Tapper pointed out.
Boom!
New CNN/ORC Poll Shows 63% Of Americans Support Same-Sex Marriage
A new CNN/ORC poll shows 63% of Americans agree that gays and lesbians have a constitutional right to marry and have their marriages recognized by the law as valid.
This reflects an increase in support of 14 points since August 2010.
Out CNN News Anchor Don Lemon Makes “Worst Journalism of 2104” List
Openly gay CNN news anchor Don Lemon finds himself on a “Year End” list nobody really wants to be on – “Worst Journalism of 2014.”
The Columbia Journalism Review’s recap of the year’s “most cringeworthy news blunders” included the out anchor because of a series of off kilter moments that made headlines this year.
“Live television is exceedingly difficult to produce, of course, but Lemon’s gaffes this year offer a case study in how to choose words wisely — or not,” wrote David Uberti.
Among Lemon’s 2014 gaffes listed were mentioning the “obvious” smell of marijuana during the Ferguson riots, asking in seriousness if a black hole might have been responsible for the disappearance of Malaysia Flight 370, and comparing spanking children to dog training.
Joan Rivers storms out of CNN interview
Comedienne Joan Rivers sat down with Fredricka Whitfield to discuss her new book, but stormed out before it was over.
Earlier this week, Rivers surprisingly called First Lady Michelle Obama a “tranny” and President Obama our first gay president.
I love me some Joan Rivers, but I’m not sure if this erratic behavior is about some underlying issue or if she’s going for the shock value in these moments to get more publicity for her new book Diary of a Mad Diva, which she’s currently promoting.
