CNN’s Don Lemon and CNN’s Chris Cuomo discuss the damage Kenosha riots are doing to the Democratic party on Tuesday.
“The rioting has to stop,” Lemon said. “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.”
The theme from my perspective, let’s show you who we think we are. The president using a pardon for a Black man. A naturalization ceremony for new immigrants now Americans and a blatantly political speech by a secretary of state to advance reelection hopes.
All of it is too little, too late because we have two major crises falling on our heads. Both of them are on this president’s watch. And it doesn’t matter what his friends say. It doesn’t matter what his wife says. He has not put his arms around this pandemic in a way that will keep our families safe.
And then you get to the second one. You have COVID and Kenosha, Don. And what’s happening in Wisconsin, it’s a Rorschach test for where this country is and I think it probably represents the biggest threat to the Democratic cause.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: You took the words right out of my mouth.
(CROSSTALK)
CUOMO: That’s because we’re reading from the same teleprompter.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: That’s all you. This is where I come in. We’ll get to that.
But when you said it’s too little, too late, I don’t know about that. I mean, we still have a lot of time left until Election Day. And I do think that this — what you said was happening in Kenosha is a Rorschach test for the entire country.
And I think this is a blind spot for Democrats. I think Democrats are hoping this will go away and it’s not going to go away. So unless someone comes up with a solution over the next 73 days or however so —
CUOMO: — 68 days.
LEMON: — 68 days. So the problem is not going to be fixed by then.
But what they can do — and I think maybe Joe Biden maybe afraid to do it. I’m not sure. Maybe he won’t, maybe he is. He’s got to address it.
He’s got to come out and talk about it. He’s got to do a speech like Barack Obama did about race. He’s got to come out and tell people that he’s going to deal with the issue of police reform in this country and that what’s happening now is happening on Donald Trump’s watch.
And when he is the president, Kamala Harris is the vice president, then they will take care of this problem.
But guess what?
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.
And the Democrats (sic) tonight, stuck with that, right?
And they also stuck with the theme that you said, the coronavirus. You’ve got coronavirus and you have Kenosha and then you have the first lady of the United States.
So what did we see tonight?
The first lady of the United States, Melania Trump, on the day the death toll, Chris, in this country passed 178,000, one of the only people at this convention to actually acknowledge the virus and to speak about race.
Did she do it an honest way or was it just for political reasons?
She did do it. But then she went on to gaslight in her own way, praising her husband’s honesty — really? — and claiming that her husband doesn’t waste time playing politics.
