CNN’s Jim Acosta Hammers Tim Burchett In Absolute Brawl Over Refusal To Slam Trump Pardons: ‘Say It! Why Can’t You Say It?’
CNN anchor Jim Acosta absolutely hammered Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) for refusing to condemn President Donald Trump over his pardon of January 6 convicts who assaulted police.
Trump’s pardons and commutations for the January 6 defendants on his first day in office, including those who committed violence against police, drew widespread and bipartisan condemnation — and awkward, at times, cringe-worthy deflection from many GOP officials.
On Wednesday’s edition of CNN Newsroom With Jim Acosta, Burchett joked “”It’s good to be on here for my weekly beating from you all at CNN” —but Acosta was not in a joking mood.
He immediately began to press Burchett to denounce the pardons of violent offenders, and went to town on Burchett for trying to deflect — at one point demanding Burchett “Say it!”:
JIM ACOSTA: I want to show this. The Fraternal Order of Police, another police organization out there, the International Organization of Police Chiefs. We can show that up on screen. That would be great. They both say that what President Trump did is wrong. They’re deeply discouraged by these pardons. And I want to ask you whatever happened–.
REP. TIM BURCHETT: Jim, if they broke the law, they ought to be in jail. You spring this stuff on me. I don’t know. I haven’t seen the types of these individuals of what they did.
JIM ACOSTA: What happened to back the blue? What happened to backing police officers? Your party has said time and again we back the blue. It sounds like you let down the blue! You’re betraying the blue!
REP. TIM BURCHETT: Why don’t you just give an editorial and not let me come on. Look what happened in the last four years with police. What happened with all the riots that took place all across the country? Police officers were murdered. Courthouses were burned. Over 22 police cars were burned. Yet no one went to jail for that. Where is that? Where is your crocodile tears for that?
JIM ACOSTA: You’re engaged–
REP. TIM BURCHETT: You know, you–.
JIM ACOSTA: You’re engaging in a games– you’re engaged now in a game of what about ism–people What about you all.
REP. TIM BURCHETT: (CROSSTALK)
JIM ACOSTA: What are you talking about, what we’re doing at CNN? We didn’t storm the Capitol! These people did. And President Trump let them out of jail.
Why not just say “You were wrong, Mr. President?”.
Say it! Why can’t you say it?
REP. TIM BURCHETT: Jim? As I said, individually, I don’t know the case, but I’ll bet on several he did not release from jail. Why are you not putting the story out on that and saying it’s a blanket– showing me the tapes of these individuals baiting police officers?
JIM ACOSTA: We’re showing it right now!
Watch above via CNN Newsroom With Jim Acosta.
