Don Lemon and Ex-Trump Staffer Clash Over Trump’s Dinner With White Supremacist: ‘Don’t Put Words in My Mouth’

CNN’s Don Lemon grilled a former Donald Trump administration staffer with a relentless series of questions on whether he condemns the ex-president for hosting anti-semites at Mar-a-Lago.

Lemon spoke to Len Khodorkovsky on Monday morning over the fallout from Trump having dinner last week with Kanye West and prominent white nationalist Nick Fuentes. Khodorkovsky, a former Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Trump administration who is Jewish, began the conversation by remarking about his descendence from Holocaust survivors to say, “I can tell an anti-semite when I hear one. And I tell you with confidence that President Trump is not an anti-semite.”

Lemon cut through the filibustering to focus on the Mar-a-Lago dinner, asking Khodorkovsky, “Do you think it was wrong for the former president to meet with Nick Fuentes?” Khodorkovsky echoed Trump’s claim that he didn’t know who Fuentes was before he showed up with West, then added, “[Fuentes] is an anti-semite, he’s repulsive, his views are disgusting, and no one of any substance should give him any forum, It’s frankly beneath President Trump to meet him.”

Lemon highlighted the fact that Fuentes showed up at Mar-a-Lago with West, who remains under massive public scrutiny over his own litany of anti-semitic and appalling comments. As Khodorkovsky wished that Trump hadn’t met with West or Fuentes, he then tried to deflect from criticism of the former president by going after alleged anti-semitism from progressive members of Congress.

“They’re not the president of the United States. He’s the former president of the United States,” Lemon countered. “This is not whataboutism. He met with an anti-semite. So can we stick to the former president and not do whataboutism? We can talk about those other people when there are issues, but there aren’t issues right now.”

Lemon then asked Khodorkovsky if Trump should have people adequately vetted before they’re allowed to meet with him at his home.

“I will give you that. Yes, of course, he should know who he’s meeting with,” Khodorkovsky answered. That prompted Lemon to say, “it sounds like you’re making excuses for him.”

You say he should know who he’s meeting with, but then you’re saying well he didn’t know. It sounds like you’re making excuses for him. There’s no excuses for bad behavior, no excuse for anti-semitism and no excuse for being the former president and not knowing who you’re allowing into a place where you have kept classified documents.

“I’d appreciate it if you don’t put words in my mouth,” Khodorkovsky pushed back, but the CNN anchor kept up the pressure by asking him, “Do you condemn the former president for meeting with anti-semites?”

“Let me explain it to you this way, sir. I know the president is not an antisemite,” said Khodorkovsky.

“I’m not asking you if he’s an anti-semite,” Lemon said. “I’m asking if you condemn him for entertaining and meeting with anti-semites. It’s a very simple question…It’s a yes or no.”

The clash continued as Lemon maintained the focus on Trump while Khodorkovsky kept trying to deflect to anti-semitism from other people. Khodorkovsky grew increasingly agitated as Lemon called out his “whataboutism” and his refusal to break off from the current news about an ex-president hosting anti-semites at his house.

“Don, it’s very rich when you’re telling somebody who is Jewish, who has experienced anti-semitism firsthand, who is a grandson of Holocaust survivors what is an appropriate way to address anti-semitism. Frankly, it’s a little bit insulting,” said Khodorkovsky.

“It’s insulting for you to think I don’t understand bigotry and racism,” Lemon retorted. “I understand it. If someone was a bigot and racist, and you ask me about them, I will always say it’s wrong to traffic and meet with bigots and racists, regardless of what you might think about me and talking about a Jewish person. I’m not talking about the Holocaust. he’s a Holocaust denier. You’re bringing up the Holocaust. A Holocaust denier met with the former president who you worked with. That should be more insulting to you than me talking about how you should respond to it.”

Watch above via CNN.