Democrats loudly condemned the arrest of former CNN host Don Lemon on Friday, but they have not condemned the invasion of a Minnesota church in the middle of a service—the incident for which Lemon faces charges.
Lemon, now an independent journalist, has claimed that he covered the invasion of Cities Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Jan. 18 as a journalist, and therefore is protected by the First Amendment guaranteeing freedom of the press. Democrats have taken up his cause, suggesting that President Donald Trump targeted Lemon for his political leanings.
Yet the indictment against Lemon focuses on his alleged conduct before, during, and after the invasion, not his political leanings.
The Daily Signal reached out for comment to the Democrats (listed below) who condemned Lemon’s arrest, seeing if thy would also condemn the church invasion and whether they would respond to concerns that Lemon’s conduct might warrant charges.
None of the Democrats responded to The Daily Signal’s request for comment by publication time.
Lemon’s Alleged Actions
According to the indictment, between 20 and 40 agitators interrupted a Sunday service at Cities Church, shouting, “Justice for Renee Good!” and surrounding and intimidating members of the congregation, which included children. The agitators, who claimed to be opposing Immigration and Customs Enforcement because one of the church’s pastors worked for ICE, refused to leave when asked and shouted, “Who shut this down? We shut this down!”
The indictment also mentions that agitators screamed at crying children, blocked parents from getting to their children in Sunday School, and that one agitator told a child that his parents were Nazis and going to hell.
The indictment states that Lemon strategized with the group’s leaders Nekima Levy-Armstrong and Chauntyll Louisa Allen before the invasion, and notes that Lemon said the group planned to “disrupt business as usual” at the church. Lemon appeared to hide the target location before the attack.
During the incident, Lemon and other defendants allegedly “oppressed, threatened, and intimidated” worshippers, blocking congregants in, restricting their movement, and “engaging in menacing and threatening behavior.”
Lemon allegedly confronted the pastor, while other agitators blocked him in, and asked him questions to further the agitators’ narrative. When people finally exited the church, Lemon observed that they were “frightened,” “scared,” and “crying,” and he said that was understandable because the experience was “traumatic and uncomfortable,” which he said was the purpose of the incident.
Lemon also allegedly prevented some people from leaving, challenging them with “facts” about U.S. immigration policy.
A federal grand jury indicted Lemon, Levy-Armstrong, Allen, and six others for allegedly violating the Ku Klux Klan Act and the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act by depriving congregants of their First Amendment right to free exercise of religion and blocking their access to the church.
Senate Democrats Stand With Don Lemon
Leading Democrats in the Senate and House of Representatives condemned Lemon’s arrest but did not condemn the church invasion.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., claimed the administration “arrested a journalist for the crime of doing his job.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who caucuses with Democrats, claimed authorities arrested Lemon “for covering what ICE is doing.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., called the arrest a “spine-chilling assault on press freedom.”
Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., called the arrest “a blatant attempt to intimidate.”
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., also framed the arrest as a personal vendetta for Trump.
“In what world is it acceptable for a journalist to be arrested by the government? The only world that is acceptable is a world that is trying to move closer and closer to fascism,” Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ill., said on Lemon’s show. He went on to say that authorities shouldn’t “arrest journalists for telling the truth.”
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said the arrest demonstrated a “hostility to the First Amendment.”
Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., framed the arrest as part of a crackdown on dissent.
Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., claimed that authorities arrested Lemon for “covering a protest.”
House Democrats Back Don Lemon
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., called Lemon’s arrest a “disgraceful affront to the First Amendment and a corrupt weaponization of the criminal justice system.” He said that “there is zero basis to arrest Don Lemon, and he should be freed immediately.”
Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, stated that “Don Lemon and Georgia Fort were taken into custody by federal agents for doing exactly what journalists are supposed to do: report the truth.”
“Let me be clear: this is not law enforcement,” she added. “This is censorship by an authoritarian government.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., also mentioned independent journalist Georgia Fort (who faces the same charges as Lemon) and called the arrests “a clear violation of the Constitution.”
Rep. Tim McBride, D-Del., also called the arrests a “direct attack on the principle of a free press and the First Amendment.”
McBride added, “There is no legal or moral justification for their arrests and they should be released immediately.”
None of these Democrats condemned the attack on Cities Church and none responded to pointed questions about whether Lemon’s actions—regardless of his status as a journalist—justified the charges against him.
