2024 GOP presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy believes his heated interview with former CNN news anchor Don Lemon led to him being fired from the network on Monday.
On last Wednesday morning’s edition of CNN This Morning, Ramaswamy was interviewed by Lemon and co-host Poppy Harlow. During the interview, Ramaswamy’s recent speech at the NRA convention was a hot topic of discussion.
During the speech, he connected the Civil War battle to end slavery to gun rights, which seemed to upset Lemon. Both Ramaswamy and Lemon got into a heated debate over the topic:
DON LEMON: The Civil War wasn’t fought for poor Black people to have guns.
VIVEK RAMASWAMY: Actually, you know, funny fact is, Black people did not get to enjoy the other freedoms until their Second Amendment rights were secured. And I think that that’s one of the lessons that.
DON LEMON: But Black people still aren’t allowed to enjoy the freedoms…
VIVEK RAMASWAMY: I disagree with you on that, Don. I disagree with that. And I think you’re doing a disservice to our country by failing to recognize the fact that we have you.
Lemon also took issue with what he believed was Ramaswamy attempting to explain African American history to him.
According to The New York Times, the heated interview may have been the final straw that ended Lemon’s 17-year run with the network.
On Tuesday, Ramaswamy joined SiriusXM host Megyn Kelly to discuss the interview and his reaction to Lemon’s departure. Kelly played clips from the interview in which she said Lemon was “really offensive” with the way he ended the conversation.
“That you were explaining what it’s like to be black in America. That’s not what happened. You were not trying to speak on behalf of Black people. You were talking about America’s history,” Kelly said.
“The reason I go through that exercise, Vivek is there are several reports out today that that was the last straw for CNN management,” she added. “So what do you make of the fact that you may have had a role in CNN’s ultimate decision to get rid of him?”
“I think I did,” Ramaswamy said. “And I think that that’s a net positive. 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.”
Ramaswamy mentioned CNN CEO Chris Licht’s desire to have more diverse voices on the network.
“If he means what he says and it sounds like he does, that they wanna be — move towards being a more open platform for diverse views, then I don’t think that type of host actually makes sense in that organization,” Ramaswamy said of Licht.
“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?” Ramaswamy said. “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.”
Listen above via SiriusXM’s The Megyn Kelly Show.
Have a tip we should know? tips@mediaite.com