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Don Lemon Tonight

Curfew Takes Effect for Fifth Night of Protests Over the Death of Daunte Wright; Fatal Police Shooting of 13-Year-Old Boy in Chicago; Closing Arguments Monday in Chauvin Murder Trial; Don Interviews Sen. Mia McLeod (D-SC); Army Sergeant Charged with Assault after Video Shows Him Accosting, Shoving a Young Black Man; Inspector General Report: Capitol Police Were Ordered to Hold Back in Riot Response; GOP Rep. Scott Perry Pushes Racist White Replacement Theory During House Subcommittee Meeting; Fauci Clashes with Rep. Jim Jordan Over Pandemic Restrictions. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired April 15, 2021 - 23:00   ET

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

[23:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: So, it's 11:00 Eastern, 10:00 Central. Top of the hour. Protesters are out on the streets in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. This is the fifth night in a row angry over the fatal police shooting of 20-year-old Daunte Wright, curfew just now taking effect.

So, the officer who fired the gun making her first court appearance today, a few miles away in a Minneapolis courtroom. Closing arguments are set for Monday in the trial of ex-police officer Derek Chauvin. He's accused of murdering George Floyd.

In Chicago, a city is on edge tonight after police released body cam video showing an officer fatally shooting a 13-year-old boy. Police say the teen was holding a gun. A lawyer for the boy's family insists the teen did not have a gun in his hand. We're going straight now to Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. That's where we'll find Omar Jimenez, he's in the thick of it again this evening. The curfew is just kicking in on this fifth straight night of protest there. What are you seeing on the ground?

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. We just hit that curfew time. And usually what we've seen over the past few nights, this is day five now that a few minutes after that is when the police begin to move in. But this is what you see right now. I mean, you hear the music going in the background. You see everybody here pressed up against the fence. This is in front of the Brooklyn Center police department.

You see the umbrellas up against the fence. And what is different this night versus previous nights is that there is a section, basically, another layer of fencing. As opposed to before, they were right up on the fence and police began shooting flash bangs and other things over previous nights. Again, now you have a little bit more separation.

And while we've heard chants over the course of the night, now it seems to be in some ways a quiet before the storm, because the chants have gone down a little. We've heard the music still going. But you see the umbrellas, the attitude has remained the same. They want police to know that they are here. They want their presence to be known as we've seen over the course of previous nights.

And you would think day in and day out as we progress into this week that some of the momentum would die down, but we haven't seen that really. Even though the numbers might not be what they were, the energy has still remained the same over the course of this. And those are just fireworks that are going off. But we imagine as we move into the night further on, that those sounds could shift pretty quickly.

And so, we're all kind of in a waiting game right now, but the main message though is being chanted before was, in honor of Daunte Wright. They want justice for Daunte Wright. And they want the full weight of the justice system to come down on Kim Potter, of course, the officer who is charged in his case.

LEMON: Omar, thank you very much. I appreciate. That I want to head now to Chicago. Another city on edge after police released body cam footage showing an officer fatally shooting a 13-year-old boy. Police say that he was holding a gun. CNN's Ryan Young, live in the city of Chicago for us right now. Ryan, another tragedy in Chicago, tell us what happened.

RYAN YOUNG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely, Don. When you think about a gun violence, it seems like it's so connected to this city. When you think about the stats sometimes, there are more guns confiscated off the streets here than in New York and L.A. combined. And when you think about this, there is also the shot spotter technology all throughout the city of Chicago.

The reason why is because when someone fires a gun, they can acoustically pick it up and then the video cameras kind of zoom in. On the night in question, there were eight shots fired. Officer got dispatched to the area. When they arrived, they saw two people running. That officer gave chase behind a young man who ended up being 13 years old and just watch this video to see what happened next. Don?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Stop, stop, right now. Hey, show me your f-ing hands. Stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[23:05:00]

YOUNG: Don, I think the toughest part of covering this story so far is a lot of people out there don't seem to believe the evidence that police gathered so far. They believe there was no gun seen in that video. Well, there is an image that police have shared where they sort of spotlight the gun. And they believe that young man had the gun in his hand. I can tell you once the officer fired a shot, he did render aid to Adam Toledo, who is 13 who died from that single gunshot wound to the chest. And they were able to recover that gun from the scene. They've also been able to match that gun to shell casings found at the

other scene. And let's not forget, a 21-year-old was arrested in connection with all this. What is believed, I heard you mention this earlier. That 21-year-old after firing those shots more than likely handed the gun to the 13-year-old because he knew that that 13-year- old wouldn't face as serious charges as he would for having that same gun. There's been a lot of conversation about this. Especially the family attorney from that young man.

They say that the kid was just responding to the officer when he said, put his hands up, and that's when he shot. In just in the last half- hour, we had about 40 protesters walking through the streets of down Chicago. They've all gone home. There were no incidents so far in connection with this. But we're told tomorrow night is the night that police expect a larger demonstration that is connected to this. You see how tough policing is in a city like this with gun violence when that whole exchange there happened within two seconds, Don.

LEMON: Yes. Ryan Young, Ryan, thank you. We'll check back with Ryan if the situation wants, but it looks like the protesters who are out there have all made their way, on their way home or whatever, but away from that scene. Thank you very much, Ryan.

I want to bring in our CNN senior legal analyst Laura Coates and the former captain of the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Ron Johnson. He was tasked with restoring peace in Ferguson after Michael Brown's death. Good evening to both of you.

Captain, Johnson, I want to start with you and talk about the police act and what they are saying there. There is body camera footage that shows that less than one second passed between the times in Toledo is seen with a gun and the officer fired the shot. If that is the case, what is going through that officer's mind at that point?

RET. CAPT. RON JOHNSON, FORMER INCIDENT COMMANDER IN FERGUSON MISSOURI: There is a lot of adrenaline. And the officer is really on edge. He's on edge just like the young man that he was chasing. Decisions are split second. And so you know, and this is tragic for both sides. The young man's family and the officer and its tragic for Chicago.

But when we don't have trust in policing, no matter what the situation is, there is always going to be doubt and that's where we are in our country. Policing is tough. That was a tough situation. I watched it. And so I won't analyze that situation. Let's wait and see when the facts come out.

LEMON: Laura, a 13-year-old boy is dead. I mean, you know, that's the facts here. There are already calls for accountability. But what are the real legal questions here?

LAURA COATES, CNN INTERNATIONAL LEGAL ANALYST: You know, it's really the same as it's been. Even the Derek Chauvin trial and other cases. This is about, what use of force is appropriate to use. Remember, for a fleeing suspect versus somebody who is not compliant. Whatever that might be. Officers still need to go through that use of force continued to figure out what type of force is appropriate, including and up to possibly deadly force.

The idea of a 13-year-old child. Many people have so many questions as Ron was speaking about and there's a lot. But notice there's a couple things that can influence the way people think about the trust gap. Remember just as in the case involving Daunte Wright, the shooting death. The police chief came out to talk about it as an accident. That can often frame the narrative about things.

The mayor of Chicago, Mayor Lightfoot came out and talked about how the city had failed this young man. That can also continue the framing of the conversation and it can increase the widening of the trust gap when people are now watching footage of the video and asking themselves whether the officers can be trusted. Whether they went and engaged in that use of force continuum and ultimately, whether to extend a benefit of the doubt for what appears to be a split-second decision.

But remember, it's never different in terms of what an officer is supposed to do. They have to abide by that use of force assessment and possibly reassessment. Even in a short amount of time. We'll see if that played out here.

LEMON: Yes. I'm speaking to both of you and everybody out there. Look, I don't know how police officers do it. That's why I'm not one, because they have to make those decisions and I don't want to have anyone's you know, life in my hands and could take it in a moment's notice.

So, Laura, I want to turn now to the Chauvin murder trial which you've been covering extensively here on the network. Closing arguments are Monday. The prosecution laid out their case in great detail and with many witnesses. Well, the defense just needs reasonable doubt in one juror's mind. Do you think they convinced anyone this week?

COATES: You know, I don't think that they made a compelling case at all on the defense side.

[23:10:02]

Remember, think about what you remember from this trial. You're going to remember the star witness. The nine minutes and 29 seconds video where you hear from George Floyd. You see everything unfold there. You're going to hear from the bystanders, a 9-year-old, the person who filmed it, to his girlfriend talking about who he was as a person and including discussions about opioids.

You remember the law enforcement officials all of whom are in his department who said he did not do what he was supposed to do. The opposite of training. Then you've got the pulmonologist, the cardiologist, the (inaudible), the medical examiner, I mean, all of these people who are tipping that scale away from ever finding an acquittal for Derek Chauvin.

On the other hand, what do you have? A use of force expert who thought that putting someone prone in hand cuffed on the ground was not a use of force and they could have used even more force against him? Body cam footage from a fifth officer, who wasn't showed the same and does not show intervening in any way? And of course, you have the medical examiner, who now introduced carbon monoxide poisoning as what he thought was a plausible cause of death here. And here's what you didn't hear from. You didn't hear from Derek Chauvin. And that could speak volumes.

LEMON: Yes. Look, Laura, you just went through a lot. At some point I was wondering, like, wow, is this too much? Because they have to keep all of that evidence, all of that in their head. But I think during the closing, as you said, they are going to be reminded of that.

Captain Johnson, multiple people from the Minneapolis Police Department testified against Chauvin's actions, including the police chief. Is that pretty rare to you know, -- how rare is that in an officer involved shooting to have the police chief speak out against the police officer?

JOHNSON: That is rare, but I think it is positive steps in our country to say that this old blue line and nobody will cross it. That wrong is wrong and I think those officers, the chief and everyone in that department was very professional and courageous in their testimony. And I think it will be impactful to the jury that heard the testimony.

LEMON: Yeah. And listen. Especially for citizens in the community to hear the police chief speak out against the police officer, I think that carries a lot of weight. And as you said, Captain, it is very unusual. Thank you both. I appreciate it.

JOHNSON: Thank you.

LEMON: So, I want to turn now to a former police officer Dmitri Roberts. OK. Dmitri, thank you so much for joining us. As a former member of the Chicago police department, please give me your reaction to this body camera footage released just today. Alright, check out this, this is a footage. And I'm going to let it go to the freeze, OK. Hold on. The audio is going to kick in in a second here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Stop, stop, right now. Hey, show me your f-ing hands. Stop.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. So, listen. That was, at the end was a freeze frame. We didn't keep it up. But check out this freeze frame from the police body camera footage. Do we have it? There we go. So, on the left side, it shows a zoomed in version of what police say is a gun in Toledo's hand. Tell me what you see, what this video and what this freeze frame here. What's going on? Walk us through this.

DIMITRI ROBERTS, FORMER CHICAGO POLICE OFFICER: Well, it's very simple, Don. In honor of all the folks that trained us in Chicago to do the right thing out there. This was just the wrong thing. So no matter what it looks like, let's talk about what it is. The officer gave him verbal directions. And those verbal directions from what we see were being complied with. And at the end of the day, he did not have a gun in his hand when the

officer shot him. So, he simply is following his verbal directions. And as Laura pointed out earlier, we have a use of force continuum that gets drilled into our heads from day one when we go to the Chicago police academy. And that simply was not used in this scenario, Don.

LEMON: He's behind the fences and he's throwing the gun. And as he turns around, you think the officer knows that he doesn't have a gun? In darkness like that?

ROBERTS: But Don, that's the point. If he is not pointing a gun at that officer, if he is not the, the officer is the one with the bullet-proof vest on. OK, he's the one who has the gun. And he's the one, Don, who had the heads up of the call that he was going into. We train for dozens and dozens of hours with scenarios just like this. And when you don't see the gun in their hand or it's not being pointed directly at you, you put your gun away and you go and arrest them. Or you get in a fight. You don't shoot and kill them.

And I'm sick of all of us getting so wrapped up in what the officer is in fear of, or what he should have done. It's very clear. This is another kid in America getting killed by a grown-ass cop. And that's just unacceptable by any standards, especially in Chicago where I ran in those same streets.

[23:15:08]

Where I had to chase dozens of fleeing individuals that have weapons and none of them ended up dead. So, again, unfortunately, we have to take away from all the positive work that the thousands of Chicago police officers are doing to focus on these unfortunate acts that this officer are well trained against to do the exact opposite.

LEMON: Listen. I'm glad you said that. I appreciate your passion and emotion. Look, I'm not an expert. You know, again, as I've been saying. Police officers have very tough jobs. In this split-second decision I don't know what I would do, but I'm not trained for it. That's what the professionals are trained for.

ROBERTS: Let me tell you something, Don. You have to have the honor and the courage to stand in the face of danger that nobody else will. And if you simply do not have the honor and the courage that it takes to wear the badge and do the job you don't need to be there. That means you are not qualified to be there.

That officer is not qualified to be there, especially on the hands of another young kid getting killed, and he did not even know why he was running. Listen, who knows, it's shots fired call. Everybody runs. And everybody in Chicago, if you are black or blown -- you run from the police too for this very reason.

So, listen, we hear all that stuff, talk about training, and retraining. Listen, the Chicago police training I went through with some of the best training that I have gone through in my life. And Don, you know I've been in the military. I've been in special operations and I will tell you, this is not a reflection of the Chicago police department or the folks that train us to do the job the right way or the honor that it takes to wear that badge and to do the job in the right way, Don.

LEMON: So, I want to ask you. Earlier someone from the police union was on with Chris, and I forget the gentleman's name. I don't know exactly. You may know him. I don't know if you saw it, but he talked about the dangers of policing. You know, what the call was about, possible gang involvement. The kids should had been in school, those kinds of things. You're not buying those arguments from --

ROBERTS: Listen, Don. If I was from any other department or had not grown up in the city of Chicago and went to become a police in the same neighborhood as I grew up in, listen, that has nothing to do with -- at the end of the day, a young 13 year old being killed, and it's a disgrace that these folks are still getting on TV and passing off the buck. Call it what it is.

And what it is, is a disgrace. And it's a dishonor to the badge and to what police officers are getting out there and putting their lives on the line at the end of the day. If you are that scared, you just don't need to be a cop. And you specially don't need to be a cop in Chicago. So, you know what, Don? They just need to clean house. I'm sorry. I'll let you go.

LEMON: No, no, I have you here to talk.

ROBERTS: Listen, they got a new administration in. We've seen the same thing with the insurrection. We got a new president in. And it's time for police departments across this country to clean house. And this is a perfect example any example in Minnesota of why that is so necessary, but we also need the tools to help these officers be more safer, to reduce the level of anxiety and fear that goes on, on both sides, both for the citizens and the officers, Don. Thank you always for having me on. I really, really appreciated it.

LEMON: No, I love your perspective, and we will have you back. Thank you for taking the time. I appreciate it.

So, a young black man in Columbia, South Carolina in a neighborhood they're pushed and threatened by a white Port Jackson soldier. I've been wanting to do the story for two days and now I have the opportunity to do it. We're going to show you what happened next. You don't want to miss it. Here it is. After tis break.

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[23:20:00]

LEMON: This next story has gone viral. It's a U.S. soldier charged with assault after a video circulated showing him threatening and shoving a young black man in a South Carolina neighborhood. Now, we don't know what happened before this incident, but there are questions about whether it is another case of walking while black. I want you to take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: You are aggressing on our neighborhood.

UNKNOWN: Someone came running (inaudible).

UNKNOWN: You better walk away. You walk away. You are talking to my wife right now.

UNKNOWN: Yes, sir.

UNKNOWN: Walk away.

UNKNOWN: I didn't do anything.

UNKNOWN: Walk away. Check it out. You either walk away or I'm going to carry your (BEEP) out of here. What do you want to do?

UNKNOWN: You better not touch me.

UNKNOWN: Or what? What are going to do?

UNKNOWN: Let's go. Walk away.

UNKNOWN: I didn't do anything.

UNKNOWN: I'm about to do something to you. You'd better start walking.

UNKNOWN: I didn't do anything to her. I didn't do anything to her.

UNKNOWN: You'd better start walking. Right now.

UNKNOWN: I didn't come after you like that.

UNKNOWN: I didn't come after you. You're in the wrong neighborhood (BEEP). Get out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: You're in the wrong neighborhood. It's 2021. Anyway, that was just part of the video. When asked about the events leading up to the altercation, police wouldn't go into detail. They said that other things occurred, but they don't justify the actions of the suspect. That suspect is Sergeant First Class Jonathan Pentland. CNN has not been able to contact him.

And joining me now, South Carolina State Senator Mia McLeod. She represents the area where this incident took place. Boy, hi Representative. Thank you, I mean, good evening to you. This is your community. What goes through your mind when you see this kind of hateful confrontation?

SEN. MIA MCLEOD (D-SC): The list is endless. Thanks for having me, Don. What we are experiencing here in South Carolina is nothing new. I mean, we see it on the news every day. I think it is nothing more than racialized violence.

[23:25:00]

And as a mom of two black sons, I am frustrated and angry. And afraid for our young black men and women who are constantly subjected to race-based hate and harassment and violence.

LEMON: You've been speaking out about this incident. You received a voicemail about it at your office this morning. And I just want to play it for our audience. We don't know if this is one of your constituents and CNN can't authenticate the voicemail, but here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Do you realize how white women are afraid to go to a black man wandering around? They're afraid they are going to be rob, they're afraid they are going to be stabbed, they're afraid they are going to be raped. White women live with this fear all the time. This is nothing new. And you stay out of neighborhoods where this could happen and you don't go down certain streets, because that's where the blacks live and they're shooting at each other. I don't know why that man was in, the one that was in a white neighborhood. But it does concern you when the blacks show up in your neighborhood. What they're doing there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

MCLEOD: You can't make this stuff up, Don.

LEMON: I mean, again, we don't know if it is one of your constituents. But I mean, she seemed to know what she wanted to say and talk about it you know, very openly. I mean, this is blatant racism. Is that what you're up against in your district?

MCLEOD: That is what I'm up against in our state. Not just my district. My district is not, I mean, we don't live in a vacuum. This is as I said it in the beginning, nothing new. She is, her mindset, of course, is nothing new. And she's basically the poster child for what we're up against, not only in South Carolina but across the country.

LEMON: Yes. Unfortunately, we're getting confirmation from police that Sergeant Pentland's home was vandalized by unknown protesters last night. They believe it was unknown protesters last night. People are angry. They're fed up. What is your message to them if it is indeed protesters who are, you know, vandalizing this man's home?

MCLEOD: Well, my message is, I mean, it's really simple. And that's what I said on the Senate floor earlier this week. I mean, people want change. They're demanding change. And I simply asked of my white brothers and sisters, I let them know that your silence is killing us. I mean, it really is. We want action. Not apathy. Courage. Not powerlessness. I mean, we want empathy. Not enmity. It is that simple and it is that difficult at the same time.

I mean, we are, this is a really critical time in our state's history and in our nation's history. I mean, we're at a breaking point. And I'm concerned that if we don't, you know, if our white brothers and sisters don't wake up and realize that you know, we may be the targets, but this is going to impact, this impacts everybody.

It impacts all of us in our communities. I did understand that the protests got out of control last night. And people are just at a loss for how to protest, how to make their voices heard. How to, you know, stand up against all of these flagrant injustices. We need answers. We need leaders who have the courage to do what's right. Not what is politically expedient?

And we just got to, we've got to look at this issue differently. It doesn't just affect communities of color. This man lives in a predominantly black neighborhood, and yet, he almost seemed to have claimed ownership of the entire community. I was blown away by that.

Clearly, he didn't understand the diversity of where he lives.

[23:30:00]

LEMON: Yeah.

MCLEOD: He talked about having a tight-knit community, but that is -- we are one community. We are a tight-knit community, but just not in a way that he -- that he thought.

LEMON: Well, look, no one's home should be vandalized. I understand people are angry, but, you know, obviously, you don't condone that, right? And we can't condone --

MCLEOD: I don't.

LEMON: Yeah. And we cannot condone that. But you're right. I think you said we're at a breaking point. I said that we are at an inflection point. And one thing that I do say is silence is not an option.

And you're right about -- these cases, our white brothers and sisters' silence is killing us. And so it is not -- it is not incumbent upon Black people to solve the issue of racism. It is incumbent upon the people who are committing the racism to understand and correct their actions.

MCLEOD: That's exactly right. I was at a community leader meeting yesterday with the sheriff. And we looked around and talked about the fact that there weren't any white community leaders present.

LEMON: Yeah.

MCLEOD: You know, and that needs to change.

LEMON: Yeah, it does. I -- I've got to go. Thank you, representative. I appreciate your time. Thank you for your candor and your honesty.

MCLEOD: Thanks for having me.

LEMON: All right. Thank you very much. You know, it has been nearly 100 days since the Capitol riot. Now we're learning about a police order that told officers to hold back their use of force despite warnings the Capitol was under threat.

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[23:35:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Tomorrow is going to be 100 days since a mob of Trump supporting insurrectionists stormed the Capitol, attempting to overturn the election. And today, we're hearing scathing testimony about the intelligence and leadership failures that led up to the riot.

Joining me now to discuss is CNN senior law enforcement analyst and former FBI deputy director Andrew McCabe. Andrew, good evening. Thanks for joining.

ANDREW MCCABE, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Hey, Don. Thanks.

LEMON: So, Capitol Police Inspector General Bolton is telling members of Congress that officers were told to hold back their use of force. Five people died that day, including an officer. Two more officers committed suicide afterwards. Who was being protected by that order?

MCCABE: Well, Don, it's really troubling. When you take that order and you consider it with the other statement by the I.G., which he basically said that those civil defense units lack any sort of organization or training or preparation or even adequate rosters to know, like, who was present at any given time, I think it's possible that order was the result of the disorder that led to that condition.

So, it seemed as if he was saying that the officers in charge held back those heavier more effective weapons because they weren't confident in their own officers' ability to deploy them effectively or to deploy them the way they're supposed to be used. So, it's just a really, really troubling portrayal of that service.

LEMON: Got a lot of ground to cover. I want to move on now to sanctions against Russia, President Biden's sanctions. He is sanctioning multiple people and companies and expelling 10 Russian diplomats. It's punishment for Russian interference in the 2020 election and the hacking of some of the country's government agencies and biggest companies. What message do you think that this sends to Putin?

MCCABE: I think the message is very clear. The message is this is going to hurt you. This is Biden administration's first foray into Russian sanctions and already they are much more serious, much more broadly impacting the Russian economic situation.

And let's face it, Don. The Russians don't care about shame. They don't care about not being able to travel to the United States or anything like that. What they care about is money. And if the sanctions are going to negatively affect the Russian economy, which these are designed to do that, they may actually have some kind of impact. LEMON: The president is saying that he wants a stable relationship with Russia. We're learning for the first time today that Russian- linked operative Konstantin Kilimnik, who recede (ph) internal polling data from Paul Manafort and Trump campaign in 2016, passed it along to Russia's intelligence services. That is a clear line from the campaign to Russian intelligence. But Trump gave Manafort a pardon in December. So, is anything ever going to come of this?

MCCABE: Well, we know, right? So, I guess it looks a little less like a hoax now. I hope so to the half the country that still believes that. Here we have the government revealing for the first time the two sides of that connection being linked, right?

Not just that Paul Manafort who knew Konstantin Kilimnik from their years working together in Ukrainian politics. We know that Kilimnik was educated by the Russian military. We know he is affiliated with Russian intelligence. We know he worked for Manafort. Manafort gives him campaign intelligence.

We know that the Russian services use their intelligence to better direct their active measures and their misinformation campaigns and their influence campaigns. And now we have the link between how that Intel got from the campaign over to the FSB. It is really extraordinary, and I think it shows the campaign to be as malignly involved in this thing as some of us thought they were from the beginning.

[23:40:00]

LEMON: Andrew, thank you.

MCCABE: Thanks, Don.

LEMON: The dangers of spreading racist theories playing out in real- time. A GOP congressman bringing up the white replacement theory on the House floor days after Fox -- days after Fox propaganda host Tucker Carlson promoted it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:45:00]

LEMON: The replacement theory that white Americans are purposely being replaced by immigrants of color to change the demographic makeup of the country now being spouted by conservative Republican during a house su committee meeting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. SCOTT PERRY (R-PA): For many Americans, what seems to be happening or what they believe right now is happening is what appears to them is we are replacing natural born American, native born Americans to permanently transform the political landscape of this very nation.

(END VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: So, I want to bring in now CNN political commentator Amanda Carpenter. Good evening, Amanda.

AMANDA CARPENTER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Hey, Don.

(LAUGHTER)

CARPENTER: Let's talk about the fun stuff, don't we?

LEMON: Oh, my gosh. Is that -- what is happening here? I mean, we have -- can you let that sink in? White -- this is a white supremacist conspiracy theory being spouted by a Republican member of Congress at a committee meeting.

CARPENTER: Yeah. I mean, this is almost becoming mainstream. Here's why I think it is so powerful and why we really need to keep an eye on it. This white replacement theory is essentially the big election lie all over again. It is the same thing.

There is this dominant strain of thinking that somehow the Democrats often working with the media are working, conspiring together to illegally, fraudulently import voters to displays the good republican vote, right?

Like this is -- used only be able to find this on Trumpy alt-right internet threats, but Tucker Carlson is really taking it mainstream, and I kid you not, framing it is a voting rights issue.

LEMON: Yeah. It's like Pizzagate, right? I mean, you know, they're conspiring and they're doing it -- whatever. Let's watch this. Let's watch it. You mentioned Tucker. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TUCKER CARLSON, FOX NEWS HOST: If you change the population, you dilute the political power of the people who live there. So every time they import a new voter, I become disenfranchised as a current voter. So I don't understand why we don't understand this.

Everybody wants to make a racial issue out of it. Oh, you know, white replacement -- no, no, no, this is a voting rights question. I have less political power because they are importing a brand-new electorate. Why should I sit back and take that?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. He knows what he is doing. He knows that is not right. But I think he does. But go on.

CARPENTER: Here's my biggest pet peeve when I hear people like Tucker espouse theories like this. Who is they? Like, can you name me the day? It's always just the big bogeyman of Democrats and the media. Probably people like me sitting here at CNN. Who is actually saying we need to import illegal new voters to displace Republicans?

LEMON: You mean you didn't go to the illegal -- CARPENTER: Show me.

LEMON: -- new voters who replaced Republican meeting tonight or did you go to the Zoom call?

CARPENTER: I missed it. I missed that Zoom call invite. But here's the thing. Tucker does know what he is doing. What he is doing is giving Republican voters who are losing power due to changing demographics an explanation wrapped in the most nefarious reasons possible to make them feel better about their station in life.

There is a lot of fan service that goes on with the MAGA media. That's what it is. It's all wrapped in vengeance, in grievance, in bad explanations to really just pit us against them so that people like Tucker can consolidate what -- with dwindling political power Republicans have.

LEMON: Yeah. Amanda, thank you. I'll see you soon. I appreciate it.

GOP Congressman Jim Jordan trying to go after Dr. Fauci in a congressional hearing, and Dr. Fauci was having none of it.

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[23:50:00]

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LEMON: So take this. America is racing to get more people vaccinated as coronavirus variants continue to spread. But in a congressional hearing today, Republican Jim Jordan is choosing to attack the nation's top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, over continuing efforts to slow the spread of the pandemic.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

REP. JIM JORDAN (R-OH): What measure, what standard, what objective outcome do we have to reach before -- before Americans get their liberty and freedoms back?

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: You know, you're indicating liberty and freedom. I look at it as a public health measure to prevent people from dying and going to the hospital.

JORDAN: You don't think Americans' liberties have been threatened the last year, Dr. Fauci? They have been assaulted. Their liberties have.

FAUCI: I don't look at this as a liberty thing, Congressman Jordan.

JORDAN: Well, that's obvious.

FAUCI: I look at this as a public health thing.

JORDAN: But the --

FAUCI: I disagree with you on that.

JORDAN: You think the Constitution is suspended during -- during a virus, during a pandemic? It's certainly not.

FAUCI: You're making this a personal thing and it isn't.

JORDAN: It's not a personal thing.

FAUCI: No, you are. That is exactly what you are doing. We are not talking about liberties. We are talking about a pandemic that has killed 560,000 Americans.

JORDAN: What number do we get our liberties back? Tell me the number. I don't want you to answer my question. The American people want Dr. Fauci to answer the question.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Well --

JORDAN: What does it really have to be?

REP. MAXINE WATERS (D-CA) (voice-over): Time expired, sir! You need to respect the chair and shut your mouth.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

LEMON: Ah! Somebody needed to tell him.

[23:55:00]

LEMON: Come on, man. Really? Liberty, freedom. What about people's liberty to live, their freedom to live without getting a deadly disease? Just put on the mask and do the work. Maybe this would be over.

By the way, that was Congresswoman Maxine Waters shutting down Jordan. It's hard to follow that, right? But what Congressman Jordan doesn't seem to get is that slowing down a virus that has already killed more than 565,000 Americans isn't about assaulting freedoms or liberty. It's about trying to stop people from dying.

Maybe if Republicans encouraged their supporters to mask up, get the vaccine instead of screaming and yelling, we'd all be free, free of this pandemic, a whole lot sooner.

Thanks for watching. Our coverage continues.

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