Democrats are up in arms demanding the release of former CNN anchor Don Lemon after his arrest Thursday night, but Republicans are having the polar opposite reaction to the news.
Lemon was arrested by the federal government for his involvement in a Jan. 18 protest against Immigration and Customs Enforcement that disrupted a church service in St. Paul, Minnesota. Lemon argues he was reporting on the event as an independent journalist and maintains he had no connection with the protest organizers.
The Justice Department felt otherwise, accusing him of federal civil rights crimes for obstructing access to a house of worship. Lemon was one of four people arrested in connection with the protest.
The Democratic Party cast the situation as an attack on the First Amendment with a simple message: “FREE DON LEMON. PROTECT FREE SPEECH.”
The Republican Party mocked the statement by resharing one of the opposing party’s 2019 posts: “No one is above the law.”
Some Republicans were pleased with his arrest and challenged the talking points made by Democrats.
In response to Rep. Jasmine Crockett’s (D-TX) critical comments, Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) pointed out the fact that Lemon was indicted by a grand jury on Thursday and was not randomly arrested.
“Hey Jasmine: 1) A federal grand jury returned an indictment. 2) Storming a church where people are peacefully worshipping is not protected speech,” Cornyn wrote on X. “Don Lemon found out.”
White House deputy chief of staff James Blair made a similar statement as the Texas Republican.
“A federal grand jury indicted Don Lemon. He was not just magically arrested,” Blair said, repeating the message two more times. “Pass it on.”
When asked if he had a reaction to the news of Lemon’s arrest overnight, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche gave a rather neutral response.
“Do I have a reaction to it? I don’t know what that means. What are you looking for me to do, jump up and down? No, I don’t have a reaction to it,” he told reporters during a Friday press conference about the latest release of the Epstein files. “I don’t know that the charges are unsealed yet. So no, I’m not going to comment on that.”
The federal indictment was unsealed later Friday, revealing the two charges against Lemon and several other defendants. The first count concerns conspiracy against the right of religious freedom at a place of worship, and the second count pertains to injuring, intimidating, and interfering with the exercise of the right of religious freedom at a place of worship protected under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.
Detailing Lemon’s participation in the demonstration, the indictment says the journalist was briefed on the protest by its organizers before it happened and started livestreaming the event on social media. While speaking to his audience, he didn’t disclose where they were going so as not to spoil the protest.
The group interrupted the church service while Lemon commentated as the anti-ICE protest unfolded.
At one point, he confronted the church’s pastor to ask him questions in support of the protest’s message. The pastor’s hand then grazed Lemon, who told the pastor to stop pushing him. Video footage of the conversation shows Lemon’s overreaction to the light touch.
Lemon and the other defendants ignored the pastor’s plea to immediately leave his church. The liberal reporter later obstructed the main door as congregants tried to leave, offering unsolicited “facts” about U.S. immigration policy.
Lemon has been unable to comment on his own arrest, but his former employer spoke up for him.
“The FBI’s arrest of our former CNN colleague Don Lemon raises profoundly concerning questions about press freedom and the First Amendment,” CNN said in a statement Friday morning. “The Department of Justice already failed twice to get an arrest warrant for Don and several other journalists in Minnesota, where a chief judge of the Minnesota Federal District Court found there was ‘no evidence’ that there was any criminal behavior involved in their work.
“The First Amendment in the United States protects journalists who bear witness to news and events as they unfold, ensuring they can report freely in the public interest, and the DOJ’s attempts to violate those rights is unacceptable,” the news outlet added. “We will be following this case closely.”
Meanwhile, right-wing journalist Nick Sortor did not feel sorry for Lemon after he was arrested in Portland last fall for documenting violent anti-ICE protesters.
“Democrats are OUTRAGED over Don Lemon being arrested for being a co-conspirator in an attack on a Church,” he posted on X, “but CHEERED when I was arrested by [Portland Police] simply for documenting the ongoing riots outside ICE Portland just a few months ago. These people are FRAUDS. My charge was so bogus that even the liberal district attorney threw it out. Says a lot!”
DEMOCRATS CONDEMN DON LEMON’S ARREST AS ‘ILLEGITIMATE’ AND ‘ASSAULT’ ON FIRST AMENDMENT
Lemon made his first court appearance in Los Angeles on Friday.
Defense lawyer Abbe Lowell vowed his client would fight the federal charges “vigorously and thoroughly in court.”
