Politically motivated violence is wrong, disgusting, and not justifiable no matter the cause. But not according to CNN's PrimeTime host Chris “Fredo” Cuomo and CNN Tonight host Don Lemon. During the Tuesday handoff between their shows, the duo essentially argued that the Black Lives Matter and Antifa riots from last spring and summer were cooler than last week’s Capitol Hill attack because they were “justified” and the cases were not “apples to apples.”
Their griping was spurred on by this exchange between Cuomo and DHS Undersecretary Ken Cuccinelli, after the latter recalled the destructive violence that raged for months (Click “expand”):
CUOMO: There are a reason that people attack the Capitol, Ken. We both know it. This is not apples to apples. Nobody has ever done anything --
CUCCINELLI: Sure.
CUOMO: Like we saw last week. And it happened for a reason. And the reason is his mouth.
CUCCINELLI: Well, they didn't do it – No, no, no. They most certainly have. They just haven't done it at the Capitol. They’ve been doing it all over the country for seven months.
CUOMO: That matters. That matters. Overturning the election is different than being pissed off about being shot by cops.
Then, ignoring the fact that the leftist riots racked up over $1 billion in damages and destroyed many lives and livelihoods, Lemon vented. “And listen, I'm glad you mentioned about being shot by cops because you cannot compare. And I'm sick of people comparing. You can’t compare what happened this summer to what happened at the Capitol. It's two different things,” he whined.
But while Cuomo and Lemon were now decrying the Capitol riot (like they should), they had actually encouraged the summer of destruction. “And please, show me where it says that protesters are supposed to be polite and peaceful,” Cuomo demanded to know back in June. And if you were concerned about the violence, he denounced you as doing it for “bad reason.”
As for Lemon’s two cents, he touted the summer riots as the “mechanism” for change. And on Tuesday, he proclaimed: “One is built on people, on racial justice, on criminal justice, right, on reform, on police not beating up – or police treating people of color differently than they do whites. Okay? That is not a lie. Those are facts. Go look at them.”
He added: “So, just on that one merit, if you want to call it, it's not comparable. That things are not comparable. So they should not be doing it. And stop this whataboutism.”
Fredo grew indignant as he broadly painted those that would condemn both the Trump and BLM riots as uncaring of the Capitol attack. “The truth is, as soon as somebody says to you, Don, they are aware of what happened last week, but this summer -- as soon as the words come out of their mouth, they do not care about what happened last week,” he sneered.
“They get that it's not apples to apples. What it is, is a reflection of the truth, of what is happening in this country. Which is, there are people who don't care, who don't like what was done, who don't believe that black people are justified, and it's why last week happened. And we can get angry too,” Cuomo continued his rant.
Don’t you get it?! The riots CNN promoted and encouraged were the right kind of destruction because they deemed them to be! Except after they realized it was helping Trump in the polls so we had to ditch it during the Republican National Convention.
This is CNN.
The transcript is below, click "expand" to read:
CNN’s Cuomo PrimeTime
January 12, 2021
10:00:05 p.m. Eastern(…)
CHRIS CUOMO: There are a reason that people attack the Capitol, Ken. We both know it. This is not apples to apples. Nobody has ever done anything --
KEN CUCCINELLI: Sure.
CUOMO: Like we saw last week. And it happened for a reason. And the reason is his mouth.
CUCCINELLI: Well, they didn't do it – No, no, no. They most certainly have. They just haven't done it at the Capitol. They’ve been doing it all over the country for seven months.
CUOMO: That matters. That matters. Overturning the election is different than being pissed off about being shot by cops.
(…)
CNN Tonight
10:01:11 p.m. Eastern
DON LEMON: Listen, I don’t mind that you’re late. Because that was a very important interview. And listen, I'm glad you mentioned about being shot by cops because you cannot compare. And I'm sick of people comparing. You can’t compare what happened this summer to what happened at the Capitol. It's two different things.
One is built on people, on racial justice, on criminal justice, right, on reform, on police not beating up – or police treating people of color differently than they do whites. Okay? That is not a lie. Those are facts. Go look at them. What happened at the Capitol was built on a lie perpetrated by the President and the people who support him.
So, just on that one merit, if you want to call it, it's not comparable. That things are not comparable. So they should not be doing it. And stop this whataboutism.
(…)
10:02:59 p.m. Eastern
CUOMO: You know, the tough spot that has you in bed for the weekend and me in an existential crisis, is that the lies are a problem and so is the truth. The truth is, Trump -- he betrayed no dissatisfaction with what last week. When he did so, he did it off a teleprompter. He knows how to speak from his heart. He didn’t.
The truth is, as soon as somebody says to you, Don, they are aware of what happened last week, but this summer -- as soon as the words come out of their mouth, they do not care about what happened last week.
LEMON: It’s true.
CUOMO: Because they know everything that you’re saying and I’m saying. They get that it's not apples to apples. What it is, is a reflection of the truth, of what is happening in this country. Which is there are people who don't care, who don't like what was done, who don't believe that black people are justified, and it's why last week happened. And we can get angry too.
LEMON: Yeah.
CUOMO: That's the truth. And it is our problem.
