CNN’s Don Lemon Says Media Must Not Accept ‘False Equivalence’ Between Democrats and Republicans: ‘They Have a Lot to Answer For’

CNN’s Don Lemon argued Thursday that members of the media must hold Republican guests to a different standard than Democrats because “they have a lot to answer for.”

The Don Lemon Tonight host joined New Day with hosts John Berman and Brianna Keilar to discuss his thoughts on how the media should approach conservatives in a post-Roe v. Wade and post-Jan. 6 world.

Lemon spoke of a Wednesday interview with former Oath Keepers spokesman Jason Van Tatenhove, who told him Americans must come together in spite of political extremes.

The CNN host recounted how it was “surreal” to speak with Van Tatenhove, who he said, “has been part of the tearing down of democracy, who has been demonizing people like me and you, who work for the media, people of color, women, and, you know, going into the Capitol and trying to steal a free and fair election.”

On having guests aligned with the American right, Lemon added:

But speaking very soberly about the realities of America and American politics right now. We sit around and we talk about these things and we want to give this false equivalence to Democrats and Republicans.

That is not where we are right now. Republicans are doing something that is very dangerous to our society and we have to acknowledge that. We have to acknowledge that as Americans, we must acknowledge that as journalists, because if we don’t we are not doing our jobs.

We cannot sit here and pretend like, well, Republicans it’s a — cut them a break. We want to hear [their side]. They have a lot to answer for in this moment. A lot to answer for what happened with the former president of the United States, why they allowed his antics to go on for so long, why he is not accountable, why they go along with it and don’t say anything.

Lemon added whether one agrees with abortion rights or not, Republicans must answer for the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

“Why they have taken back a right that was granted to American women for 50 years,” Lemon said. “They have to answer for those questions if they come here on CNN they must answer for that. If they go on MSNBC they must answer for that. If they go on ABC they must answer for that.”

He added Republicans cannot “expect to be coddled when they go on to a news organization or if they step in front of a crowd of supporters or voters or Americans.”

He argued the Republican Party is more broadly connected to “extremism,” before making the case that “people in charge of what the American press put out” misunderstand the current state of the GOP.

“They want to believe that we are living in 1987, this sort of Reagan-esque Republican,” Lemon concluded. “That’s not where we are right now. And if we continue to allow that we are going to go off of a cliff and I’m not sure that we can return.”

Watch above, via CNN.