Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy believes his contentious interview with Don Lemon last week contributed to CNN’s decision to fire the controversial anchor.
The New York Times reported on Monday that the interview left CNN executives “exasperated” likely because it generated more negative headlines targeting Lemon. At one point in that interview, Lemon suggested that Ramaswamy was not qualified to speak about the rights of black Americans because Ramaswamy is not black.
Speaking with Megyn Kelly on Tuesday, Ramaswamy agreed his interview with Lemon was an impetus for Lemon’s ouster.
“I think I did, and I think that that’s a net positive,” Ramaswamy said.
“Look, I actually wanna be really clear about this. It all comes down to what the mission of your organization is. If CNN’s mission is to advance a woke progressive orthodoxy, Don Lemon is a perfectly fine host to have on air to cut off guests, to tell people they can’t speak based on the color of their skin because that does represent a worldview that exists in the country,” he continued.
The Inside Story of Don Lemon’s Fiery Exchange with Vivek Ramaswamy That Led to Lemon’s Firingwww.youtube.com
According to Ramaswamy, Lemon’s personality made him unfit for CNN CEO Chris Licht’s vision for the network, which is to focus on hard news in a moderate and honest way.
It’s not just about cancel culture in the other direction and saying that, “Hey Don Lemon, it’s a good thing he’s fired.” The question is: what’s your purpose as an organization? And if CNN’s purpose is to air multiple different perspectives on air, then I think that you can’t have TV hosts who tell guests, whoever they are, that they can’t speak or express an idea about post-Civil War reconstruction history in America without thinking about what their skin color or race is first.
Ultimately, Ramaswamy said he believes Lemon became so upset during the interview because he is unable to reconcile the idea that civil rights and Second Amendment rights are inextricably connected in American history.
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