CNN’s Jim Acosta spars with a Republican guest over the Jan. 6 pardon in a heated debate
CNN host Jim Acosta sparred with him Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn.over President Donald Trump’s Jan. 6 pardon of those accused in a heated spat on the liberal network that quickly went viral on social media.
On his first day in office on Monday, Trump signed pardons for about 1,500 defendants who were charged with crimes stemming from the riots at the US Capitol, making good on a promise he made in December to act quickly and pardon them.
Acosta blasted Burchett for the pardon on his show Wednesday and demanded that he convict them.
Burchett told Acosta that many of those defendants did not receive a proper trial and that those who stormed the Capitol building on January 6, 2021 should not “rot in prison for the rest of their lives in a federal penitentiary and never be charged.”
TRUMP PARDONE FOR ALMOST THE WHOLE OF JANUARY. 6 ACCUSED ON INAUGURATION DAY
CNN anchor Jim Acosta debated with Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., about President Trump’s January 6 pardon. (CNN/Screenshot)
As Acosta continued to press him to condemn the pardons, Burchett said he did not know the details of each person’s case, but said those who broke the law should be in prison.
“What happened to ‘back the blue’? What happened to the escort officers?” Acosta asked fervently. “Your party says over and over again, ‘We support blue.’ Sounds like you’ve failed the color blue!
Burchett accused CNN of selective outrage over Trump’s pardons when former President Joe Biden reduced sentences for murderers and rapists of children before he left office.
He asked Acosta why there were no demands for justice for the violence that occurred during the 2020 Black Lives Matter riots.
“Why don’t you just run an editorial and let me come?” retorted the Republican. “Look at what happened in the last four years with the police? What happened to all the riots that happened across the country? Police officers were killed. Courtrooms were burned. Over 22 police cars were burned. Yet nobody went to jail for it. “
– Where are your crocodile tears for that? he asked Acosta.
Federal police officers fire tear gas at a group of protesters during a Black Lives Matter protest at the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse in Portland, Oregon, on July 26, 2020. (AP)
Acosta accused Burchett of engaging in “whataboutism” before again imploring his guest to condemn Trump.
“Why don’t you just say, ‘You were wrong, Mr. President?’ Say it! Why can’t you say it?” Acosta pressed.
The two continued their discussion for nearly 10 minutes, with Burchett calling the Jan. 6 treatment of the defendant “political from the start.”
He reported that some of his constituents, who had left the Capitol grounds before the riot began that day, were visited and “harassed” by FBI.
As Acosta continued to press Burchett to criticize Trump’s actions, the Republican criticized CNN for ratings and bias.
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., mocked CNN’s ratings and bias against President Trump in a heated confrontation with Jim Acosta on the liberal network. (Getty Images)
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“All of you are perpetuating this, this narrative of attacking Trump. You just can’t stand the fact that he won and America has spoken and your point of view is very diminished,” Burchett said.
Clips of the segment went viral on X on Wednesday. Burchett shared the clip on his own account, criticizing CNN for trying to “lecture” his party on morality in the wake of Biden’s controversial pardons.
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The Department of Justice reported that approximately 140 police officers were assaulted during the riots at the Capitol on January 6, 2021. This included law enforcement members from the US Capitol Police and approximately 60 from the Metropolitan Police.
Diana Stancy of Fox News contributed to this article.
