OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
CNN anchor Don Lemon went after Democrat Sens Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin after they refused to vote in favor of their party’s election overhaul legislation.
Lemon, who hosts “Don Lemon Tonight,” joined hosts John Berman and Kasie Hunt to discuss the two bills — the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the Freedom to Vote Act.
The panel discussed the fact that Manchin and Sinema have refused to support the radical elections bill and also do not support ending the Senate filibuster, which requires 60 votes to pass legislation.
Lemon was not happy about this, calling it “bullsh*t” and accusing Lemon and Sinema of being “the biggest hypocrites on the planet.”
“Convenient. I mean, it’s convenient for them. And that’s the problem. And that was what I struggled with yesterday. I struggle with it every year, but most — especially this year because everyone — listen, we all want to pay tribute to Dr. King, especially on the day that we celebrate his legacy, right, so we put things on social media and I struggle with that,” Lemon began his rant.
“Everyone always puts, you know, him when he’s standing there, you know, the orator and March on Washington or he’s standing at a pulpit or whatever, and I said I didn’t want to do that this year. What I wanted to show that I could do off of CNN’s air was show him in the trenches, being arrested, having his head bashed, right, being threatened, going to jail and those things,” he said.
“And inevitably you get the politicians, especially the ones in Washington now who are blocking the people’s access to the voting booth, and they want to use Dr. King conveniently,” he added.
“They’re the biggest hypocrites on the planet, because if Sinema and Manchin really want to honor the legacy of Dr. King and all the people who fought for civil rights and voting rights in this country, what they would do is do a carveout for voting rights with the filibuster. That’s what they would do. But for some reason, they are mired in tradition and they’re stuck with these rules that are backward,” he said.
“And as the former president said at John Lewis’s memorial service, these are relics of Jim Crow. The filibuster has been used to block civil rights legislation forever, and so we need to stop that. We evolved. Just because there is a rule doesn’t mean that that rule can’t change. The Constitution is amended, so it’s time to amend the rule and protect the most sacred right that we have as Americans, and that is the right to vote,” he declared.
“‘We can’t change the rules because the rules are tradition, but we’re going to block people from the voting,’” Lemon said in mocking tones. “And you’re supposed to be a Democrat who espouses to the ideals of Dr. King — that’s bulls***. That’s BS. That’s BS. And you should be ashamed of yourself. You are a hypocrite,” Lemon concluded.
WATCH:
"That’s bull … That’s BS. And you should be ashamed of yourself. You are a hypocrite." @donlemon unloads on lawmakers who want to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. while standing in the way of voting rights reform by opposing the filibuster. pic.twitter.com/UKX0tQGI2E
— New Day (@NewDay) January 18, 2022
On Wednesday night, the final tally on limiting debate on an election reform bill was 49-51. The bill needed 60 votes to pass.
No Republicans voted to advance the legislation.
Of note, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer changed his vote against it, which is a procedural trick that allows him to bring the bill back for consideration.
