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Don Lemon Tonight

Police Still Hasn't Ruled Out a Hate Crime; Asian-American Lawmakers Pissed Off with Racist Colleagues; Biden and Harris Team Traveling to Atlanta; CNN Staff Experience Racism Themselves; FBI Released More Videos of January 6 Riot; Senator Rand Paul Calls Mask Wearing a Theater. Aired 10-11p ET

Aired March 18, 2021 - 22:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[22:00:00]

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN HOST: The only reason for somebody to tell you, well, they told us not to wear them, now they say wear them. The only reason to go back a year is because you don't like where you are right now, because you see some advantage of it.

And I tell you, Senator Rand Paul, come on. Make the case to the non- converted. The way you preach to the converted. Because they are selling people bad situations and non-science and it's keeping us sick.

Thank you for watching. CNN Tonight is the big show and the big star is D. Lemon.

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: Yes, bitter, party of one as I was watching that video with Dr. Fauci and Rand Paul, as you were saying. Why even go through -- why? There's no reason. There's only one reason. For political gain, or you're angry or you're bitter. You're a hater. You're a hater. That's what it is.

CUOMO: I mean, it can't be on the -- I totally get this argument. Here's the argument I would make with Fauci. I had a little bit with him tonight. You guys are playing it too safe. And this is a balancing test. OK, there are going to be cases, but the vaccine, the rate of vaccine, who we've gotten vaccinated already, the fact that there is an increase in masking, the messaging has been working with Trump out of the way, not all surges are the same.

And you have to balance that against the depression to the economy, the depression to our way of life of just straight up depression, and you're playing it too safe.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: How -- better safe than sorry.

CUOMO: Absolutely.

LEMON: I don't believe in this playing it too safe.

CUOMO: I don't -- I agree with you. But I'm saying here's the argument you could make.

LEMON: Got it.

CUOMO: Is you're playing it too safe.

LEMON: Well, here's --

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: Give me a vaccine passport. I want to be able to go and businesses say the vaccinated only.

LEMON: How about --

CUOMO: So, Don and Chris get vaccinated and now we can go to dinner.

LEMON: How about what the president said, give me a patriot passport, give me a better countryman passport, give me an American passport that says we should look out for our fellow man. This is not about being selfish. Hey, I got mine. You get yours. That's what people are saying.

So, if I get this -- if I get the shot, let's say I'm fully vaccinated tomorrow, I'm not going to run out and flaunt it and then take this mask and, like, throw caution to the wind, I'm going to burn it. You know why? Because I care about other people. I care about something more than myself. I care that there may be someone who has a preexisting condition who may not have been vaccinated. I care that there is a woman who is trying to get pregnant, who has concerns about the vaccine, and may not have taken it yet.

CUOMO: I agree.

LEMON: Or a woman who is pregnant.

CUOMO: I agree.

LEMON: Who has not taken the vaccine because she's worried about her unborn kid. I get that? Because why? I am a thinking, compassionate, empathetic person and I just don't have politics at the top of my head.

CUOMO: I agree.

LEMON: That's what -- why don't you be a patriot, why don't you just be a decent human being and stop trying to be so negative and get Dr. Fauci or Joe Biden. Guess what, here's the thing, here's the thing, Joe Biden is doing a fantastic job when it comes to the pandemic. He's saying all the right things. He's doing all the right things. He's getting shots in people's arms. He's following the science. He's not giving you lies. He's not telling you that light and bleach and disinfectant is going to help you when you inject it inside of your body.

So stop it on the right because the guy you had in the office did really dumb stuff and told you crazy things and lied about you, gaslighted you, and you fell for it and you believed it and now you're walking around and you don't want to get the vaccine. Why? Because you say you don't trust it but you really don't want to get it because Joe Biden is doing a great job with it. That is the truth. Now take that to the bank.

CUOMO: Now, for those people --

LEMON: Or as my grandmother used to say, put that in your pipe and smoke it. Go on.

CUOMO: There is that group, and I think Rand Paul is probably playing to them.

LEMON: Yes. He is.

CUOMO: That is what it is.

LEMON: I need water after that.

CUOMO: I know. I can imagine, I've never seen anybody say so many words in a row. The thing is -- don't choke. The thing is that you also have a lot of people who would benefit from being incentivized by something in addition to a sense --

LEMON: Right.

CUOMO: -- of humanity and altruism.

LEMON: Right.

CUOMO: And I don't think there's anything wrong with the messaging or political suggestion of that. Because look, the science as it's been suggested to us from Fauci and others is that it's a maybe, not a must, that if you have the vaccine you can still spread infection. It's a maybe.

LEMON: Right.

CUOMO: So, the argument becomes, all right, well how much of maybe because you're really not giving people a hell of a lot of incentive to get the vaccine. Because the vaccine is for you. It keeps you from getting so sick you would have to go to the hospital.

LEMON: Right.

CUOMO: It's not so much about transmission. That's what masks are about. So, I think that they could play it a little bit more aggressively but that's different than saying you're lying, you don't know, there's no science. That's my -- that's where Rand Paul and I take ways. There are different ways to look at it but you're looking at it as a position of just bringing down Fauci, and that ruins his argument.

[22:05:03]

LEMON: OK, how about -- let's see. So, if I was -- I'm coming up with a slogan. So, you know how we say don't hate. Participate. Don't hate if you're extreme on the extremes. Moderate. What about that? But the best one I think I just came up with this as you were talking.

CUOMO: Genius.

LEMON: Don't hate, vaccinate.

CUOMO: Wow.

LEMON: How about that?

CUOMO: I can't believe it took you that long to get to that. I think Cha Cha had that in a project for a fifth grade.

LEMON: Turned it in.

CUOMO: Look, people have got to get vaccinated.

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: Because that's how you get back to your loved ones.

LEMON: I will tell you this, I have gone over to -- which is near where we work, the Javits Center, man, that is a well-run operation.

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: It is run well.

LEMON: Well run. People are not waiting in line.

CUOMO: And by the way, to be fair, forget about New York, because that's where my brother, right, but Biden is doing a good job, I don't disagree with that.

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: His team is doing a good job because they're allowed to do their job and the states are killing themselves --

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: -- to get this done. So, there's a lot of components to success. Failure has one father. Success has many. But Biden is not stopping them from doing their job and that can make all the difference. And I look forward to this time that I think the media is getting ahead of. The media is getting ahead of this reverse curve of supply to demand. We're not there yet.

LEMON: Nope.

CUOMO: We have a lot of people who want the vaccine and can't get it. You're looking at two of them --

LEMON: Yes.

CUOMO: -- right now.

LEMON: This is what -- see my water? It's more than half full. So that's what I'm thinking. It's not like, you know, almost empty or -- it's more than half full. So, the glass is half full, and it's not half empty. So, I prefer to be optimistic about the summer, and I prefer to -- don't hate, vaccinate.

CUOMO: You know, just because you said it doesn't mean nobody else has said it before --

LEMON: That means --

CUOMO: -- nor does it make you genius. You write one book and all the sudden --

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: But I said.

CUOMO: Here it comes.

LEMON: All right. We've got to get to the news.

CUOMO: Everybody was going to buy it until that. D. Lemon, I love you. Thank you for sharing your book with the radio audience today.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: That was great.

CUOMO: They loved what you had to say.

LEMON: They loved what we had to say.

CUOMO: I didn't get to say much, to be honest.

LEMON: I know. But that's, you know, that's change because usually you talk more than I do. You love to -- no one loves Chris more than Chris. And if you don't believe him --

(CROSSTALK)

CUOMO: It's only because I've got no competition.

LEMON: -- ask Chris.

CUOMO: I've got no competition in loving Chris. I come in first every time.

LEMON: This is --

CUOMO: I love you, D. Lemon.

LEMON: I love you.

CUOMO: Have a good night. LEMON: CNN Tonight. I'm Don Lemon. Thank you for watching, everyone.

So, on to the serious stuff now, and we all need a little levity and a little friendship and a little love in the times that we're in. So that's why Chris and I do what we do every night. And we hope you enjoy it.

But now let me get to the news. Because we know, we know where the hate comes from. We don't know yet whether the shooting spree that killed eight people in and around Atlanta, six of them Asian women, we don't know yet whether it was a hate crime. At least not according to police. We know what we think in our heads and where that takes us, right, where common sense takes us but police haven't declared it that yet.

So, let's see. But we know hate crimes are on the rise. We know that for sure and we know Asian-Americans across this country are terrified.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: So, is the investigation -- the investigation into a possible hate crime, is that still on the table?

CHARLES HAMPTON, DEPUTY CHIEF, ATLANTA POLICE DEPARTMENT: Our investigation is looking at everything, so nothing is off the table for our investigation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So that's Atlanta police and here's what they're saying. They're saying that they don't have a position on whether this is a hate crime, but nothing is off the table, OK, and nothing is off the table.

But we do know that the president, President Biden and Vice President Harris are set to meet with Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, and Asian-American leaders are doing that tomorrow.

Even before this horrible case, though, these terrible murders, Asian- Americans faced rising hate, racist comments, serious violence. But like I said we know where the hate comes from. Look. We shouldn't dance around this. We should not pretend that we haven't heard it with our own ears over and over and over and over.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: At that time, we called it the Wuhan virus. Right? Wuhan.

China's cover-up of the Wuhan virus allowed the disease to spread all over the world.

I can name kung flu. I can name 19 different versions of names. Kung flu, yes.

(CROWD CHEERING)

TRUMP: You know sounds like -- see, I like the China virus. Or I like the plague from China.

It's got about 24 names. I can call it from COVID to China virus. I can call it the plague. I call it the China plague.

We and the whole world got hit with the China virus.

[22:09:58]

The incredible people and families who suffered so gravely from the China virus, it's a horrible thing that was put onto the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, there you go. Like all the hate and racism in this country it was here before the Trump presidency. It will be here with us long after unless we're willing to do the work to defeat it. But he fed it, and he fed up on it. And when you sow the wind, well, you know what you reap, right, the whirlwind.

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms telling Anderson Cooper tonight it's hard to see this is anything other than a hate crime. A suspect who killed eight people, six of them Asian women, is a white man, who got the bad day defense?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAY BAKER, CAPTAIN, CHEROKEE COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: He understood the gravity of it, and he was pretty much fed up and kind of at the end of his rope and yesterday was a really bad day for him and this is what he did.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Eight people are dead, six of them Asian women. And he was having a bad day. Just imagine what they might have said about a Black suspect, or a brown suspect, or an Asian suspect, or an Asian suspect. Right? They probably wouldn't have gone right to having a bad day.

So, the sheriff says those comments weren't intended to disrespect as disrespect for the victims, the gravity of the tragedy, or to express empathy or sympathy for the suspect. But that spokesman Captain Jay Baker has been taken off the spa shooting case.

Meanwhile, photos have surfaced allegedly posted by Captain Baker showing shirts with a racist anti-Asian message about COVID-19. Shirts that say COVID-19 imported virus by Chyna -- c-h-y-n-a, you know, mimicking the president, Chyna, with a caption love my shirt, get yours while they last. Chyna, huh? Chyna. We know where that comes from. We know who said Chyna over and over and over.

Although the account that posted it has been deleted. CNN was able to access photos through a cash copy. The name on the Facebook account matches Jay Baker, and it claims that the individual is an employee of the Cherokee county sheriff's office, when contacted by CNN about the post, Baker told CNN no additional comment.

But you really only need to hear Congressman Chip Roy to understand how big the problems of race is -- big the problem of race is in this country right smack in the middle of a hearing on discrimination and hate crimes against Asian-Americans and Pacific islanders he equates justice with lynching and then makes it all about himself. Launching into a defense of exactly the kind of rhetoric the hearing was supposed to be condemning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. CHIP ROY (R-TX): We believe in justice. All right. There's an old saying in Texas about, you know, find the -- all the rope in Texas and get a tall oak tree. You know, we take justice very seriously and we ought to do that, round up the bad guys. That's what we believe.

My concern about this hearing is that it seems to want to venture into the policing of rhetoric in a free society, free speech, and away from the rule of law and taking out bad guys.

I'm not going to be ashamed of saying I oppose the Chicoms, I oppose the Chinese Communist Party, and when we say things like that and we're talking about that, we shouldn't be worried about having a committee of members of Congress policing our rhetoric.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: First he should pull his mask up, but -- what is he talking about? Let me give you some free advice. OK, sir, let me give you some free advice. Lay off the talk about all the rope in Texas and the tallest tree.

A United States congressman talks openly about lynching, one of the most horrible crimes against people of color in the nation's history. And don't give me that fake I'm being censored, don't tell me what to say B.S., you can still say you oppose the Chinese Communist Party. You know. That's not what this is about.

It's not about Chip Roy. It's not about the people who have a voice and a platform. It's about hate. I almost said something. It's about hate. God, I want to say it.

[22:15:04]

It's about violence. Especially against the people who don't have that voice and platform. It's about people across this country who are terrified. You should be standing up for them, not making this about yourself.

That's all we have heard from people who have been so aggrieved because Black, brown, Asian, because people don't want to be discriminated against but you're so aggrieved because you can't say something offensive because you want to say offensive things with impunity. And then when you are checked on it, when you have to face the consequences for it you scream, cancel, I'm cancelled. No, you weren't cancelled. You were held accountable. You said

something stupid. And you must pay the consequences for it. That's how it works. Congressman Grace Meng getting choked up as she slams Chip Roy for what she says is putting a bull's eye on the backs of Asian- Americans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. GRACE MENG (D-NY): Your president and your party and your colleagues can talk about issues with any other country that you want, but you don't have to do it by putting a bull's eye on the back of Asian-Americans across this country on our grandparents, on our kids.

This hearing was to address the hurt and pain of our community, and to find solutions and we will not let you take our voice away from us.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Congressman Ted Lieu condemning Roy's racist rhetoric and saying it hurts the Asian-American community.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. TED LIEU (D-CA): I served active duty. You can say whatever you want on the first amendment. You can say racist, stupid stuff if you want but I'm asking you to please stop using racist terms like kung flu or Wuhan virus or other ethnic identifiers in describing this virus.

I am not a virus, and when you say things like that it hurts the Asian-American community. Whatever political points you think you are scoring by using ethic identifiers in describing this virus you are harming Americans who happen to be of Asian descent. So please stop doing that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: And you know what? It's not just Chip Roy. Congressman Rodney Davis telling CNN the real problem is political correctness.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. RODNEY DAVIS (R-IL): It's all political correctness and that's what the American people are sick and tired of the D.C. bubble, wanting to determine what is politically correct and what is not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: It's always some excuse. For saying some B.S., for being racist or bigoted or letting it slip, maybe these days. I don't know if it's even letting it slip. People just say it. That's what the former president did. Became the imprimatur for bigots. The bigot imprimatur. Just say it right in the open. Not behind closed doors. Right out in the open wearing a suit.

I know that the grammatically correct thing so say is this is not about political correctness. It is not about political correctness, OK, if you're listening. This is about hate. It's about hate. Hate that is exploding into violence all across this country.

This is about Asian-Americans who are afraid to go to the store. Afraid to lead their daily lives. To wait for a bus. Just play with their kids outside. It's about hate. Stop making it about you. My freedom. My freedom to be a bigot, to say racist things. My freedom to be -- it's politically correct, it's cancel culture. Please, I'm sick of it, shut up. Take a good long look in the mirror. Stop being a bigot. Stop it.

So, what is the administration going to do about racism and hate in this country? I'm going to ask a top adviser to Vice President Kamala Harris, Symone Sanders, is next, and just wait until you hear how Dr. Fauci answers this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RAND PAUL (R-KY): You want people to be able to get the vaccine, give them a reward, instead of telling them that the nanny state is going to be there for three more years and you've got to wear a mask forever.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[22:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: President Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris traveling to Atlanta tomorrow to meet with Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and with Asian-American leaders reeling from the spa shootings that killed eight people, including six Asian women. A portion of the trip originally planned to promote the new COVID relief law has been postponed.

So, there's lots to discuss. CNN -- excuse me, I'm so used to saying CNN's -- Symone Sanders is here, a senior adviser and chief spokesperson for Vice President Harris. Sorry, Symone, old habits die hard. Thank you for joining us and talking to us --

(CROSSTALK)

SYMONE SANDERS, SENIOR ADVISER, VICE PRESIDENT Harris: Old habits die hard.

LEMON: -- about this really important thing that you're doing, this event that you're doing. So, Symone, the president and the vice president, meeting with local leaders tomorrow to discuss the horrible spa shooting spree that killed eight people, including six Asian women. What does the administration plan to do to fix this problem?

SANDERS: Don, it's just, first of all our hearts go out to the families and friends and the people in the surrounding Atlanta area who are grieving today. The president ordered flags to be lowered at half-staff in light of the shooting that happened on Tuesday. So, it -- it's just so harrowing and heartbreaking.

The president and vice president have a track record here, Don, the administration has a track record here. In January, I'd like to remind folks that the president signed a number of executive orders specifically about racial equity and one of them was specifically about addressing the xenophobia and discrimination against the Asian- American community here in the United States.

[22:25:06]

So tomorrow, this meeting is really to hear from local community advocates, elected officials, community leaders about how they are feeling in the wake of this horrific, horrific shooting but also to discuss solutions going forward and the commitments that the president and vice president have made to the AAPI community.

LEMON: I want to talk now about COVID and the vaccine. The Biden/Harris administration is on track to hit 100 million vaccines, get 100 million vaccines in arms tomorrow, well ahead of the 100-day goal.

I'm sure you've seen the criticism that the bar was set achievably low but it's still excellent news. What's the next goal here, Symone?

SANDERS: You know, I have to laugh about the criticism, Don, because I remember when the president first announced his goal of 100 million shots in 100 days, and it was said it was too ambitious. Folks said it couldn't be done. And as the president said today one headline even wrote it won't be easy and those folks were absolutely right.

But the way that the Biden/Harris administration got this done was by operationalizing the Defense Production Act, by really working our COVID team hunkered down, Jeff Zients and his entire team increasing access to vaccines in communities across the country through the federal pharmacy program.

More than 600 community vaccination sites, partners with community health centers. And that's how we got to -- we're going to get to 100 million shots in arms tomorrow but it's not over yet. As the president and vice president have said, it is extremely important that folks do not let up, that we do not let our guard down. And that when the vaccine becomes available to you in your community, whichever vaccine it is, that you take it because you can save lives and we'll save communities.

LEMON: Listen, I know you saw the interview with George Stephanopoulos when the president spoke to him earlier this week and he talked about how Vice President Harris plays a similar role to one that he had under the Obama administration in a very key way. Watch this and then we'll discuss.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I give my opinion. I was the last guy and I get to leave. But he's all by himself. I have to make that decision. That's the big difference. GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, CHIEF ANCHOR, ABC NEWS: Is Vice President

Harris the last person in the room?

BIDEN: Most of the time, yes, as a practical matter, yes, she is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, what advice is the vice president giving President Biden on voting rights legislation, Democrats introduced that in the Senate yesterday because without that Republicans are full speed ahead, restricting access to the ballot box all over this country.

SANDERS: Well, Don, access to the ballot box is so, so, so important and something that the both the president and vice president have been champions of their entire career. The president, if he were sitting here, he'd tell you that he presided, when he was chairman of the Senate judiciary committee over the longest extension of the Voting Rights Act while he was chairman.

Vice President Harris will tell you that she has been a champion, working with community leaders all across this country, specifically also in California when she served as a senator from California.

This is an issue of grave importance to the administration. On the anniversary of bloody Sunday both the president and vice president addressed virtually crowds in Selma, Alabama and talked about the administration's commitment to preserving access to the ballot box for all Americans. The president signed an executive order. And this is something you are going to hear more from the president and vice president on very, very soon.

LEMON: But Symone, I wonder what her advice is. Listen, he knows the Senate, right, she knows the Senate a little bit more currently than he does. I'm just wondering if she has any advice for him as to get this legislation passed, who to work within the Senate, who might be winnable or what have you. Is there anything that she offers the president on this issue, especially voting rights, that would be helpful to him in the decision in getting it passed.

SANDERS: Well, I'm not going to get into the specific conversations the vice president and the president have, but obviously the vice president and the president and our entire legislative team frankly are in constant communication with folks on the hill.

The vice president is very close to a number of her former Senate colleagues. She is making phone calls. We will see tomorrow the new senators from Georgia, Senator Reverend -- Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock and Senator Jon Ossoff. I do believe they will be down in Georgia.

This is such a very keen issue of particular importance to the administration and the vice president along with the president believes that voting rights legislation is extremely important. That H.R. 1, the democracy legislation that just passed the House of Representatives should be taken up in the Senate and legislation of important such as this, such as the John Lewis Voting Rights Act that I know has yet to come and pass out of the House and come before the Senate but I'm sure it's on its way.

[22:30:01]

This is legislation that should not be held up, Democrats and Republicans have to work together because issues of access to the ballot box, these are not partisan issues. This is about a fundamental tenet of our American democracy.

LEMON: Symone Sanders, I appreciate you joining us, thank you so much.

SANDERS: Thank you so much, Don. See you soon.

LEMON: Asian-Americans across the country facing the fear of unprovoked attacks. Two CNN correspondents share their own very personal experiences with anti-Asian hate. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Atlanta police say that they are still investigating the suspect's motive in the deadly spa shooting that killed eight people, six of them Asian. The killing striking fear in many Asian-Americans who had been dealing with a spike in violence and racism over the past year.

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan whose wife is from South Korea is opening up about the racism his family has been experiencing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. LARRY HOGAN (R-MD): This is not something new. It's just gotten much, much worse. Each of my daughters has a personal story about a very close friend that's gone through some terrible stuff just recently.

[22:35:03]

Friends of my wife. I mean, I've got my youngest daughter is afraid to come visit us. Her best friend's mother was attacked at a convenience store. My middle daughter, her best friend was on -- getting on a plane with her children where she was subjected to, you know, racist slurs.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, I want to talk now about this with my CNN colleagues Amara Walker and Kyung Lah who have spoken so powerfully about this in the past and are doing it now. So, thank you both for joining. I really appreciate it.

Amara, first, I want to get to the scene because you're there in Atlanta, covering this horrific -- these horrific shootings. Right before you came on the show last night you said that someone screamed virus at you. What has it been like for you to not only cover anti- Asian hatred but to live it? AMARA WALKER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's saddening but to be honest it's

also enraging. It makes you so angry because, you know, I've been spending the last few months looking at videos of our elderly Asian father -- grandfathers and grandmothers being push and had punched in the face and killed in some instances simply for being Asian.

And you know, it makes me think of my parents. You know, could this happen to my parents, it makes me call them, and say, hey, mom, dad, maybe you shouldn't go on that walk today, maybe it's not the safest thing to do. You know, and also when I hear people calling me China virus or telling me to go back to my country.

Or my friends, my colleagues tell me, look, I went to the grocery store the other day and a woman grabbed her children and jumped back, you know, dramatically to show me I might have the virus. You know, those things make me angry but also, you're talking about covering the story.

I mean, I live in Atlanta. So when, you know, I heard what had happened six out of the eight victims being Asian women that really hit close to home, Don, literally and figuratively. And it's a scary time right now for Asians. I mean, this is real, the fear is real. And we are under siege.

LEMON: Kyung, you know, you covered a bunch of Republican campaign events conservative parts of the country this past year, you reported about it here on this show and all of CNN programming, places where people asked where you're from, or if you speak English, you're always very professional about it but it has to affect you. No?

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm shockingly used to it. I think the best way to put it is that I'm numb to it. And it really brought it home last month when I was with my white producer, Kim Berryman, at a conservative region where there are very few Asians and she gets into the car and she says why is everybody asking where are you from?

And it's something that you just get used to, feeling like you just don't belong. And you just plod ahead. But the reality is, is that you do belong but you have to constantly fight and let people know that you do belong. And that is a tiresome thing. It is burdensome. It is annoying. It -- you don't want to feel like a foreigner in your own home. But in many cases, that's what it comes down to.

LEMON: Yes. You know, that -- you had to -- you have to tell your producer that. I mean, and I'm sure she'd never experienced that before, right, because people see her, your producer, as someone who belongs. And yet, you're just as American. And people wonder where you from, why -- you know, it's -- yes.

I don't know. I mean, what do you -- what do you say to that, Kyung? I don't even know what -- I don't even know what to ask you because, again, it's so infuriating and it's so confounding.

LAH: You just -- you know what, I just never tell them. Where I'm from, I'm from Chicago. Where are your parents from? The Chicago suburbs. You mean that suburb Streamwood. You just -- it almost becomes a game because it's so exhausting and it's commonplace and it happens all the time. And really, you just want to say, look, I am from America, just like you.

LEMON: Yes. Amara, you know, I thought this was fascinating that you said this, you said that Asians had been an invisible minority for too long, in part because of stereotypes. Talk to me about that, if you will.

WALKER: Yes, I mean there is a stereotype that, you know, it's a misconception really that all Asians are rich, we're educated, we don't have problems and hence we can't deal with racism. And that is so far from the truth. They think Kyung, you know, feels this way as well.

A lot of us have dealt with racism since the day we were born. I remember being bullied as a child for the way that I look. And so, this is what makes us invisible in the community because people don't think we deal with racism and hence we're absent from the conversations about racism and inequality in America.

[22:39:56]

And I also think that some of us need to take responsibility for being invisible, and I'm talking about us in the Asian-American community because, Don, there are cultural barriers. Right?

I mean, we've been raised, a lot of us have been raised to keep our heads down, don't make too much noise, don't, you know, bring attention to yourselves and if you're a child of immigrants, you know, my parents always told me, look, Amara, you're just luck -- you should be grateful for the opportunities you have in this country, even though I was born and raised here.

And so, I think it's been heartening to see more and more Asians, fellow Asians speaking up about the hate that they've experienced their entire lives and more so lately. But we Asians have been silent for too long.

LEMON: Yes, I think it's sad that has to happen. And I understand the mind-set of your parents because it's really self-preservation, right, and trying to make sure that you are safe in this country and that people don't mistreat you and don't discriminate against you.

I understand that to an extent but not the way you do because I'm not in your skin and I'm not an Asian-American. But what this does show is that we have so much to learn about each other and that we should be open to learning about each other and making friends and having relationships with people who don't look like us, and who are different than us.

And I think that's really - really, the first way around this, is seeing people -- seeing each other's humanity and you don't -- then you won't be able to discriminate against people or dehumanize people if you can really see and feel someone else's humanity. That's my two cents. So, I really appreciate both of you coming on and being so honest and

candid about this and I think we should have more conversations like this. Thank you, really, from the bottom of my heart. I know it's a tough time. Thank you both.

WALKER: You bet.

LEMON: Thank you so much.

New videos from the capitol insurrection showing rioters punching and beating police officers. The FBI now asking for your help in identifying the suspects. We'll be right back.

[22:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: So, in a rare interview, the former President George W. Bush speaking out over the capitol insurrection telling the Texas Tribune what he saw made him sick.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I was sick to my stomach. And then to see our nation's capitol being stormed by hostile forces. And it really disturbed me to the point where I did put out a statement.

UNKNOWN: Yes.

BUSH: And I'm still disturbed when I think about it. It undermines rule of law and, you know, the ability to express yourself in peaceful ways in the public square. This was an expression that was not peaceful.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That as, today, the FBI is releasing graphic new videos from the riot, there they are up on your screen now and they are asking for help for the public to identify 10 suspects, 10 suspects involved in what they call some of the most violent assaults against officers.

The shocking video showed the officers under attack. And include -- and include freeze frames of the suspects, the FBI is looking for. I want to warn you, though, some of the clips are very disturbing.

One of the videos shows rioters grabbing Officer Daniel Hodges' helmet and face mask and smashing his head against a door. Another suspect caught on body cam video punching an officer in the face.

More than 300 people have been arrested in connection with -- there it is, punching him right in the face. More than 300 people have been arrested for the insurrection and so far, 65 have been charged with assaulting law enforcement.

In addition to these 10 suspects in the videos the FBI is saying they're on the lookout for more than 250 unidentified individuals involved in the riot.

Joining me now to discuss, CNN contributor and former FBI Deputy Director, Andrew McCabe. Thank you, sir.

I was deliberately reading slow there so that people can get an idea of what's in the video. And you see them punching officers, squeezing the mask against the door frame and so on and so forth. Really just horrific behavior.

I appreciate you joining me.

It's been more than two months since this insurrection. We're now getting these shocking new videos in. So, talk to me about what we see here and why the FBI wants to get this out.

ANDREW MCCABE, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, Don, I mean in the most explicit terms what we see here is absolutely sickening. You see a vicious kind of orgy of violence that was unleashed upon our fellow citizens, our members of law enforcement whose job is to protect the capitol.

And as a member of law enforcement, some -- you know, anyone who carried a badge and a gun in the protection of this nation looks at those videos and can't help be anything other than completely sickened. But I think what's important for your viewers to understand is what the FBI is doing about this.

So, you can think about this investigation in terms of kind of the rings of a target. Right? So initially, that first broad round-up was people who were easily identifiable and who were clearly inside the capitol. Some place they should not have been, and were charged with things like violent entry and trespass related offenses.

And then as they zeroed in on folks who were more culpable and more deeply involved you saw the conspiracy charges against groups like the Proud Boys and the Oath Keepers and things like that. Now what you're seeing is a real focus on those individuals who are involved in the most violent, the most offensive conduct that day.

And this is a hard process. Right? They have to -- they see those incidents happening. They're able to key in on particularly identifiable elements like a hat, or a piece of clothing or a mask that somebody is wearing and then they track that indicator through thousands of hours of videotape to try to follow where that person went on the day of the events.

[22:50:07]

And now we're at the point where they're essentially crowdsourcing the identification of those people, so I really hope that anyone who knows anything about the folks in these videos is reaching out to their local FBI office tonight.

LEMON: Look, every time I see a video, it's like I'm seeing this for the first time. I can't -- Andrew, I just cannot believe that these police officers went through this. And that these people actually did this. And look, last night I spoke with the Capitol Officer, Harry Dunn, I'm not sure if you saw it. I'm going to play some of it for you. But I talked to him about how --

(CROSSTALK)

MCCABE: I did.

LEMON: -- he talked to me about what other officers experienced. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HARRY DUNN, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE OFFICER: Once I had time to sit down and put it all together, it was just so overwhelming that here we are, giving so much and putting our lives on the line to protect democracy and keep it, and we're being called racial slurs, traitors, and any weapon that these people could use. The terrorists there on the 6th, they were there to cause harm and they came prepared for a fight. And they hurt us, physically and emotionally.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, the attempts by Trump allies like Congressman Louie Gohmert and other Republicans who whitewashed the attack, and to deny it that it was an insurrection. Do they just empower the people who did this to attack again? Does it just embolden them?

MCCABE: It does. It does. Look, we know that what happened on January 6th was an obscene offense against those things that all of Americans hold dear, right? Democracy and the sanctity of our process of electing presidents and everybody agreeing to the fair and free results of an election.

We know now from the report issued by the DNI this week about the domestic violent extremist threat in this country, that that threat is being accelerated, not only by the big lie that claimed that the election was stolen, the grievance around that, but by the people who continue to perpetuate that.

These folks, these violent extremists are emboldened by the acceptance and the acknowledgement of public people who are, who fail to call them out, who failed to puncture this, you know, let the hot air out of this lie and continue to perpetuate these falsehoods to this day. And I think, I think we're at the point now where responsible Republicans should understand that by not stepping out in front of this thing and calling it out for what it is, they are part of the problem.

LEMON: Andrew McCabe, thank you, sir. I appreciate it.

MCCABE: Thanks, Don.

LEMON: Senator Rand Paul trying to tell the nation's top infectious disease doctor that masks are just theater. I'm going to show you how that went over.

[22:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Take this. Republican senator Rand Paul going after Dr. Anthony Fauci. This time on why Americans should continue to wear masks after getting vaccinated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: You're telling everybody to wear masks, whether they've had an infection or vaccine. What I'm saying is they have immune and everybody agrees they have immunity. What studies do you have that people who have had the vaccine --

ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: Yes.

PAUL: -- or have had the infection are spreading the infection? If we're not spreading the infection, isn't it just theater? You're wearing two masks.

FAUCI: No, it's not.

(CROSSTALK)

PAUL: They got the vaccine and you're wearing two masks, isn't that theater?

FAUCI: No, it's not -- here we go again with the theater. Let's get down to the facts. When you talk about reinfection, and you don't keep in the concept of variants, that's an entirely different ball game. That's a good reason for a mask. Let me just state for the record that masks are not theater. Masks are protective. And we --

(CROSSTALK)

PAUL: Mask wearing they are theater. If you already have immunity, you're wearing a mask to give comfort to others.

(CROSSTALK)

UNKNOWN: Senator Paul, (Inaudible), let Dr. Fauci --

PAUL: You're not wearing a mask because of any sign.

FAUCI: I totally disagree with you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That guy. Experts say mask wearing is still necessary because COVID variants are spreading more and more across the U.S. Vaccine that have already been approved might not be effective against getting them or spreading them. That's why experts like Dr. Fauci say keeping masks on will protect everyone. Vaccinated or not.

Senator Paul may be a doctor but he sure doesn't sound like an expert. A GOP congressman bringing up lynching at a hearing on discrimination and that's only one of the bizarre remarks coming from Republicans today.

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