President Don Lemon? Former CNN anchor says he’s open if ‘the right opportunity’ comes
Don Lemon is in the headlines again — this time for floating the idea of running for president. On the March 29 episode of the “Pod Save America” podcast with former MSNBC host Alex Wagner, the former CNN anchor admitted that he’s open to running if the right opportunity presents itself.
BlazeTV host Pat Gray played and reacted to the clip on a recent episode of “Pat Gray Unleashed.”
Wagner asked Lemon if he was considering running for office. After a tangent about how he’s disadvantaged because he’s “not a white man” so the “rules are different” for him, Lemon said that he was open to the idea.
“Do I ever think about it? Yes. Could it happen? Yeah, it could happen if the opportunity presented itself — the right opportunity presented itself. ... I think I could be president of the United States. I could definitely run this country better than Donald Trump,” he said.
“A towel roll could. You would be a marked improvement,” Wagner replied.
“As an independent though, there would be a hard time for me to run for anything because, you know, the way the system is set up. I'd have to choose a side. And so, you know, I probably would have to become a Democrat,” Lemon added.
“You know what else I think that I could run better than most people? ... A news organization because I was there. I've been in the game for so long, and I'm not interested in being, you know, the anchor out front. I could come in and fix the bulk of their problems and lickety-split in no time flat,” he continued, noting that he’s currently “building his own channel.”
Pat says the only thing Don Lemon could run well is “maybe a gay bar.”
“What do you want to bet there'll be over five people there watching?” he asks, referencing Lemon’s new channel.
Between Meryl Streep’s warning to women about the dangers of the SAVE Act and Lemon’s presidential aspirations, Pat “[loves] what’s happening with the left.”
“They’re all so brilliant,” he laughs sarcastically.
To see Lemon’s clip and hear more of Pat’s commentary, watch the video above.
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WATCH: Liberals are completely losing their minds
BlazeTV host Sara Gonzales didn’t previously have high hopes for liberals like Don Lemon, Nancy Pelosi, or Leslie Jones — but recent comments the three have made have set her expectations even lower.
“The other thing that the internet is really good for are videos of liberal losers,” Gonzales says before playing a clip of Lemon “hinting at a potential run for president.”
“I think I could be president of the United States,” Lemon said. “I could definitely run this country better than Donald Trump.”
“As an independent, though, there would be a hard time for me to run for anything because, you know, the way the system is set up, I’d have to choose a side. And so, you know, I probably would have to become a Democrat,” Lemon concluded.
Gonzales is amused.
“He would have to become a Democrat. That is hilarious. ... This criminal, whose only accomplishment is terrorizing churchgoers, thinks for one second that he could be president,” she says.
And Pelosi’s comments weren’t much better.
“We always have concerns, but with this president and these Republicans who have no commitment to the rule of law and doing things the appropriate way, we’re ready. We have to be on guard as to what they may try to do to the technology,” Pelosi said in an interview on MS NOW.
“They may try to creep into the technology and create a false count,” she added.
“Oh, interesting, because back in my day, if you even mentioned that voting machines could be hacked, you would be sued into oblivion. So, it’s a very interesting turn of events to hear Nancy Pelosi admit that that was possible,” Gonzales comments, before turning her attention to former SNL cast member Leslie Jones.
“She, in all her brilliance, decided that marriage is slavery,” she says, playing a clip of Jones on Ziwe’s podcast.
“I think marriage is legalized slavery,” Jones stated.
“If he’s expecting you to be a trad wife, he might as well pull out a whip and a chain,” she continued.
Jones went on to advise the young audience not to get married.
“Obviously, trad wives, the trade-off is that their husbands are out working, and they get to stay home. It’s actually a total blessing. Women love that if they are in a position where they are able to do that,” Gonzales comments.
“But I’m not even convinced that Leslie Jones is a woman after hearing her speak. So, maybe that’s why she doesn’t quite get it,” she adds.
'Outstanding': Harmeet Dhillon brings down the hammer on remainder of Minnesota church-storming suspects
Weeks after Don Lemon and dozens more agitators allegedly stormed a church service in Minnesota, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon made a much-anticipated announcement.
On Wednesday, Dhillon announced that all 39 individuals suspected of disrupting the church service had been arrested as of Monday, adding an intriguing detail about a couple of the arrests.
'Outstanding work by DOJ. You don't get to terrorize churchgoers in America.'
"As of Monday, all 39 individuals indicted in the attack on Cities Church in MN had been arrested, two of them while abroad," Dhillon wrote on X.
"We @CivilRights look forward to bringing justice to the victims of this attack and demonstrating our commitment to justice for all!" she continued.
RELATED: Don Lemon enters plea following January arrest in connection with Minnesota church disruption
Activists stormed Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, on January 18.
Apparently among them was ex-CNN talking head Don Lemon, who previously pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiring to violate someone's constitutional rights and violating the FACE Act.
Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) praised the DOJ's persistence in this case: "Outstanding work by DOJ. You don't get to terrorize churchgoers in America."
Likewise, BlazeTV host Auron MacIntyre lauded the arrests, noting how easily the case could have disappeared in the news cycle.
"I appreciate the follow-through on this. Many people predicted that the administration would do nothing and with all of the other news it would have been easy to let this quietly drop out of the cycle. But they didn't, they charged them all," MacIntyre said.
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Pam Bondi drops hammer on 30 more anti-ICE agitators accused of storming Minnesota church
The Department of Justice unsealed an indictment on Friday charging 30 more people who allegedly stormed Cities Church in Saint Paul, Minnesota, last month.
The arrests are related to an incident that occurred on January 18, when anti-immigration enforcement protesters entered the church, disrupting its Sunday service and intimidating the attendees.
'The First Amendment does not give anyone — regardless of profession, prominence, or politics — license to storm a church.'
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that she instructed federal agents to apprehend 25 of the newly indicted individuals, vowing that more arrests would follow.
"YOU CANNOT ATTACK A HOUSE OF WORSHIP. If you do so, you cannot hide from us — we will find you, arrest you, and prosecute you," Bondi wrote in a post on social media. "This Department of Justice STANDS for Christians and all Americans of faith."
FBI Director Kash Patel revealed additional details about the indictment, stating that the individuals had been charged under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, commonly known as the FACE Act.
RELATED: Anti-ICE radical who took credit for the invasion of Minnesota church ARRESTED by feds
Patel explained that the FBI had carried out a joint operation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations to arrest the suspects. He also noted that there would be additional arrests.
"This makes 39 indictments in the Cities Church case total so far, including the arrest of Don Lemon and multiple alleged leaders of the riot last month," Patel stated. "Let it be known: This FBI will never tolerate anyone who targets, intimidates, or attacks Americans peacefully exercising their right to worship freely."
Lemon was arrested on January 29 and released the following day. He pleaded not guilty to violations of the FACE Act and conspiracy to violate another's constitutional rights. The other original eight defendants in the case also pleaded not guilty.
True North Legal, the law firm representing Cities Church, responded to the superseding indictment and additional arrests in a Friday statement.
"The indictment of 30 additional people for their involvement in the invasion of Cities Church sends a clear message: Houses of worship are off limits for those who would use chaos and intimidation to advance a political agenda," Doug Wardlow, director of litigation for True North Legal, stated. "The invasion of Cities Church was a planned, coordinated effort to disrupt a worship service and interfere with religious exercise that placed congregants, including children, in fear for their lives. The First Amendment does not give anyone — regardless of profession, prominence, or politics — license to storm a church and intimidate, threaten, and terrorize families and children worshipping inside."
"Cities Church is grateful for the Department of Justice's continued commitment to enforcing federal law to protect churches and other places of worship. The Department's aggressive prosecution of this case affirms a foundational principle: In the United States, the sanctuary remains a sanctuary," Wardlow added.
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Don Lemon enters plea following January arrest in connection with Minnesota church disruption
After former CNN anchor Don Lemon allegedly joined a group of protesters who stormed a church in St. Paul, Minnesota, during a service last month, he finally appeared for his arraignment on Friday.
The incident allegedly involving Lemon and several other protesters occurred on January 18. Lemon was arrested on January 29 and released the following day, according to a CNN report.
Lemon is charged with conspiring to violate someone's constitutional rights and violating the FACE Act.
Lemon, as expected, pleaded not guilty to the two charges brought against him. Lemon is charged with conspiring to violate someone's constitutional rights and violating the FACE Act.
Lemon has reportedly hired former Minnesota federal prosecutor Joseph H. Thompson to represent him.
RELATED: Don Lemon ARRESTED over apparent involvement in church invasion; Jim Acosta whines
Upon his release from custody late last month, Lemon said, "I have spent my entire career covering the news — I will not stop now. In fact, there is no more important time than right now, this very moment, for a free and independent media that shines a light on the truth and holds those in power accountable."
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Deace: The Pam Bondi Show needs to be canceled
I know you thought the Super Bowl halftime show brought to you by a double-digit-IQ reprobate was bad, but Pam Bondi appeared before Congress this week and said "hold my beer."
She’s playing the Republican base for suckers with her constant night-at-the-improv act. That future gig as a Fox News contributor ain’t gonna happen all by itself.
The memes cataloguing her jackassery simply won’t stop despite Trump’s mightiest efforts to bail her out. I mean, how do you explain away "don’t worry about the Epstein rape island because have you considered where the Dow is?"
Yikes.
The midterms called and said the blue wave is a-coming! We’ve clearly come a long way from "lock her up," but in exactly the wrong direction. The message is highly radicalized, but the perception increasingly seems to be that we are not delivering on it and perhaps we never intended to.
A lot of politics is perception. That’s just the plain reality of it. It’s why one of my Ten Commandments of political warfare is "never attack what you aren’t prepared to kill." So if, for example, we pull out of Minneapolis right now and declare victory but Tim Walz, Don Lemon, and Ilhan Omar pay no discernable cost, what has actually been gained?
In fact, the right will have managed to disappoint both sides of its political coalition. First the establishment thought the optics were too violent, and now the base thinks the optics are too cowardly. Then add to that mix elitist talk about the Dow papering over the need to expose the perpetrators of global sex crimes, and prepare for a dire electoral judgment day.
You can personally admire the president and everything he has done for this country (and I do) but still remember that Trump lost about 40 House seats in the 2018 midterms. What about this time? You have to live in the world of actual realities and outcomes. So when the pollster calls you about the current direction of the country and your personal situation includes homes that you still can’t sell and schools that are still trying to trans your kids, you are going to need your affinity for Trump to be doing a lot more heavy lifting than whatever Pam Bondi is bringing to the table on his behalf.
When the base starts to ask why protecting Howard Lutnick is more important than protecting base voters, Houston, we have a problem. But perhaps I’m wrong. Let he who has not brought his family to Epstein Island cast the first stone!
Given that the attorney general is arguably the most important position in the executive branch other than president, I wish I had more to analyze for you than the level of stupid now before us. What would we have said if Hillary Clinton tried something like what Bondi just did before Congress? I don't know that I have ever seen a figure on the right being more justifiably and savagely ridiculed by her own side.
RELATED: A Texas political shock Republicans can’t ignore
Does everyone understand what a self-own it was for Bondi to try to own the libs by accusing Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) of being a crooked inside trader? Because what position in the federal government is uniquely equipped and empowered to find out if Raskin should be punished for abusing his position within the United States Congress? Could it be Attorney General Bedazzler Bondi herself? Good grief.
She’s playing the Republican base for suckers with her constant night-at-the-improv act. That future gig as a Fox News contributor ain’t gonna happen all by itself, is it, Pam?
Meanwhile, and maybe I’m weird this way, I just want to win. And by that I don’t mean something as trite as the final score of a football game. No, winning means saving America for our children to live safe and free. The existential stakes of our current political moment fall nothing short of that.
The cold truth is that Pam Bondi at this point is clearly an embarrassing impediment to that goal. She's not only not helping us win, but I've got a set of binders right here and they all say it's more likely that she'll be the reason we lose.
Mobs don’t get a veto over worship
America has always protected lawful protest. It has never protected persecution. Some communities now blur that line on purpose, and anyone who cares about civil rights, religious freedom, or the rule of law should be alarmed.
Most recently, agitators stormed Cities Church in Saint Paul, near Minneapolis, during a worship service to protest U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids around the Twin Cities. Federal authorities, including the Department of Justice, are investigating the incident under civil rights laws that protect religious exercise at places of worship. Several people, including journalists present, have been arrested or charged in connection with the disruption.
You don’t need to agree with the worshippers in Minnesota or California to defend their rights. Civil liberties mean nothing if they apply only to causes we like.
This wasn’t an isolated incident. Peaceful worshippers have faced unlawful harassment before.
Last year, in March and September, Christian and Jewish worshippers in Southern California gathered peacefully to pray, sing, and express deeply held religious beliefs about Israel and the Jewish people. They came to worship. A coordinated campaign of intimidation met them instead: blocked entrances, screaming mobs, bullhorns blaring sirens, graphic signs aimed at children, physical assaults, and targeted harassment designed to make worship impossible.
First Liberty Institute filed a detailed federal complaint describing how the disruptors planned and coordinated these attacks and then celebrated them afterward. They registered for church events under fake names, infiltrated the Mission Church, screamed accusations of “genocide” and “Nazism” at Jewish and Christian worshippers, and resisted removal. Outside, others blocked exits and forced families — including children and seniors — to run a narrow gauntlet just to reach their cars.
At another interfaith service, agitators surrounded vehicles, jumped on worshippers’ hoods, laid dolls in driveways while calling Jewish guests “baby-killers,” and blared sirens for hours to drown out prayer and preaching.
That conduct is flatly illegal. It is also a transparent attempt to cloak intimidation in the First Amendment.
The First Amendment does not authorize people to physically interfere with worship, intimidate attendees, or use force and coercion to silence beliefs they despise. Congress recognized that principle when it passed the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) made sure the law would protect religious exercise at places of worship from exactly this kind of obstruction. When mobs block entrances, assault worshippers, or deliberately prevent services from being heard, they break the law.
RELATED: When worship is interrupted, neutrality is no longer an option
These incidents also reveal something darker: the targets and the motive.
The worshippers were Christians and Jews united by shared religious convictions about Israel. For Jewish attendees, support for Israel is not a political slogan; it is woven into faith, daily prayer, and identity. For Christian congregations, support for the Jewish people flows from sincerely held theological beliefs. Targeting those beliefs through harassment and violence is religious discrimination.
History shows where this road can lead. When officials tolerate intimidation against one disfavored group, it spreads. Our complaint documents a surge in anti-Semitic attacks nationwide since Oct. 7, 2023, along with a widening hostility toward anyone who publicly stands in solidarity with Jews. Persecution works the same way every time: isolate the target, then punish anyone who refuses to abandon the target.
The aftermath should chill every American. The complaint alleges that organizers vowed to continue, posted videos on public Code Pink channels boasting about their actions, and shared images of worshippers online to expose them to further harassment. Churches canceled events. Interfaith groups struggled to find safe venues. Ordinary people began to fear worship in their own communities.
The Free Exercise Clause means little if mobs can intimidate Americans into silence inside their own sanctuaries.
RELATED: A protest doesn’t become lawful because Don Lemon livestreams it
On Monday, victims of this harassment will testify before President Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission. The commission plans to issue a detailed plan to protect religious liberty in coordination with the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
You don’t need to agree with the worshippers in Minnesota or California to defend their rights. Civil liberties mean nothing if they apply only to causes we like. The moment we excuse intimidation because we sympathize with a protest’s message, we abandon equal freedom under the law.
Courts now have an opportunity — and an obligation — to draw a firm line. Peaceful protest belongs at a respectful distance, not inside sanctuaries. Reasonable debate belongs in the public square, not enforced through threats, coercion, and attempts at injury. If mobs get to decide who may worship freely, no one is safe.
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