On Tuesday's New Day on CNN, conservative analyst Scott Jennings was infuriating the liberals on set by raising the issue of Kamala Harris and the Biden campaign staff bailing rioters out of jail. Liberal analyst Bakari Sellers jumped all over Jennings, pretending he had no point, and that Democrats were bailing out peaceful protesters in the style of John Lewis.
SCOTT JENNINGS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, look, I think some of the words Joe Biden said yesterday were the correct message, although I'm left wondering, "What am I supposed to believe?" On the one hand, he says, "Do I look like I have a soft spot for radicals?" And on the other hand, his running mate, Kamala Harris, has tweeted out links asking people to bail them out of jail -- the people who've committed violence -- and, in fact, several staffers on the Biden campaign have done just that. And so, just as a consumer of information, I hear Joe Biden's words, and then I see his ticket's action, and then I'm left to wonder, "What's the truth?"
JOHN BERMAN: Bakari, you want to weigh in there?
SELLERS: Yeah, I mean, I don't know, Scott woke up this morning, got coffee, and is deciding to spin stuff that doesn't make any sense. Look, there is a clear difference between rioters … there's a clear difference between peaceful protesters who were arrested for their civil disobedience. We just had this entire life lesson. I'm talking about people like C.T. Vivian and John Lewis. There are many people who went and protested civilly, disobediently, who were arrested, and we tried to help bond them out of jail. There is a difference between bonding them out of jail and talking about people who are rioters. And the fact that that's the only talking point you have this morning is disappointing.
Even more importantly, my question to you would be, while you want to get up in arms, it's not about the words versus bonding out peaceful protesters. Your President -- the President of the United States -- the person who carries the Republican mantle -- cannot disavow the actions of Kyle Rittenhouse. He cannot talk about the fact that Jacob Blake should not be paralyzed today. So let's talk about that. Let's have a real conversation, not turn yourself into a pretzel with talking points.
So the conversation turned to Rittenhouse, and Jennings quickly agreed Rittenhouse should not have been at the scene, but he did not argue that Rittenhouse has a case for self-defense, as video demonstrates.
Sellers denied that Kamala Harris had helped raise money that went to bail violent rioters out of prison even though it has been documented that that is how some of the funding was used, as was reported Monday night by Fox News Channel's Tucker Carlson.
Jennings is a rarity on CNN, actually making points that conservatives would make. The typical "conservative" contributor is more like Trump-bashing Matt Lewis, who on Tuesday sounded like a stereotypical liberal analyst as he invoked Willie Horton and Lee Atwater and complained about President Trump making a campaign issue of violent crime:
MATT LEWIS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Look, I think it's so sad and transparent -- Donald Trump believes that this is the only way he can win the election. This is his Richard Nixon, Lee Atwater, Willie Horton, whatever it is. This is his play -- it's all he has left. And I think what's interesting about this, though, is he's not even hiding it. These aren't even dog whistles. He's being very transparent.
Crime is "all he has left"? Matt Lewis doesn't think there's any issue not only in defunding police and abolishing bail, he doesn't think there's any issue in "Medicare for All" or the Green New Deal or the Biden-Bernie Sanders platform.
