Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Ex CNN news cable show host Don Lemon is yet another perfect foil for Trump. That’s right Trump, not U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. She has been the most visible outspoken, and angry in saber rattling Lemon. That even included an X post warning that she was coming after him.
But Bondi in the legal assault on Lemon is simply mouth-piecing for Trump. He has bullied, badgered, hectored, threatened, intimidated, sued and otherwise terrorized much of the mainstream media during nearly every moment of his first and now second term in the Oval Office. His aim is clear. That is to ensure he has a compliant, yes-person, and make no criticism of him and his administration media.
Now we come to Lemon. During his stint at CNN, Lemon was not only the highest profile African American news cable show host. He was one of the highest profile hosts period. He often got into public spats with Trump calling him out on one or another of his legion of serial lies. Trump did not forget or certainly forgive even after Lemon’s departure from CNN.
He bided his time. Lemon for his part continued to cover stories, post comments on social media, and remained a viable media presence. Lemon’s coverage of the Minneapolis church protest over ICE would in any other season and by any other journalist been simply one of many news items and stories that flowed out of Ice’s Minneapolis rampage. It would have been quickly forgotten.
But Trump didn’t forget. Lemon quickly came back in Trump’s take down bullseye. Bondi did the dirty work, first threatening arrest, and prosecution of Lemon on unspecified charges. Then she delivered with the summary arrest by federal agents at of all places the Grammy awards presentations in L.A. that Lemon was covering.
This is sweet revenge for Trump. Lemon has vowed to fight whatever the charges are against him by every legal means at hand. He likely will win since there is no evidence of any wrongdoing by him. But Trump in a perverse sense wins too. Sweating Lemon is his way of sending yet another warning to the media do and say anything even remotely critical of me and you’ll pay a price.
Earl Ofari Hutchinson is an author and political analyst. His latest book The ICE Shooting Scorecard (Amazon ebook and Middle Passage Press PB) He hosts the weekly news and issues commentary radio show The Hutchinson Report Wednesdays 6 PM PST 9 PM EST at ktymgospel.net. and Facebook Livestreamed at https://www.facebook.com/earl.o.hutchinson