In the wake of numerous snubs and awkward moments at the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter, Don Lemon went berserk over one of the non-rude moments, which was when former President Barack Obama had what appeared to be a cordial chat with President-elect Donald Trump. Lemon sounded off on Obama in a video posted to his YouTube channel.
Beginning his angry tirade, Lemon asked how Obama could be friendly with Trump despite the variously controversy between the two, ignoring the simple answer of “good manners” and snapping, “People had many, many questions. How could Barack Obama, the man who faced vicious, racist conspiracies for years because of Trump act so buddy-buddy with him?”
Continuing by rattling off some examples of Trump’s alleged misdeeds, he snapped, “Does he not remember birtherism? Does he not remember how for years Trump lied about how he was secretly born in Africa? Does he not remember how Trump suggested that he was secretly a Muslim who was sympathetic to terrorist groups and terrorist causes?”
Lemon then noted that the conversation will surely diminish the faith Democratic voters have in their political leaders, saying, “Perhaps more critically, does he not remember how his entire political party has been calling the man a fascist, an autocrat, a threat to democracy for months if not years? People could not believe what they were seeing. Had the Democratic Party lied to them? Had Kamala Harris and Joe Biden lied to them?”
Still not done, Lemon then rambled about how Obama had to be at the funeral, ignoring that Michelle went on vacation instead of showing up, and said, “Look, in reality, Barack Obama was just doing his duty. The former president had died and he inevitably was going to have to brush shoulders with Trump there in the same presidential club. Right. What was the alternative? Not to watch Jimmy Carter be laid to rest?”
Returning to the matter of Obama laughing, Lemon went on to declare, “Now, I think he had no choice, but laughing at Trump’s jokes on camera? It was risky, kind of cringy. Optics like this are things that Democrats have to consider going forward. They spent years, if not months, if not years labeling Trump a political aberration, someone cruel, if not evil, outside the norm.”
And, again noting that voters won’t trust Democrats in their rhetoric about Trump now, Lemon said, “Their voters may feel lied to if they appear to embrace him now. You can’t just memory hole comparing someone to Hitler. So, Democrats, you’ve got to keep in mind ahead of Trump’s inauguration and frankly, for the next four years, like what that looks like, your behavior around the man will matter. It does matter.”
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Concluding, he said, referencing Karen Pence’s rude snub of Melania, “You can’t allow Karen Pence to present as a more steadfast defender of democracy, a more courageous critic of Trump, than yourselves. Democrats, your outdated impulse to prioritize good relationships with your conservative colleagues at all costs. It’s got to end.”
Watch Lemon here: