CNN Lets Guest Smear GOP as a 'Cult' Over Voting Laws

April 2nd, 2021 10:33 PM

In spite of being schooled by a Republican guest earlier this week for their commitment to spin over facts regarding Georgia's voting law (the latter we've repeatedly provided at NewsBusters), CNN's New Day still hadn't learned their lesson on Friday and instead doubled down on fearmongering over the issue as several guests were allowed to push their anti-Republican views.

Over the course of two segments, one liberal guest excoriated the Republican Party as a "cult" and falsely claiming the law was passed because of their "fantasizing over a lie" and another falsely claimed that the new law would both "take away people's right to vote" and result in Republicans picking the winner of any and all elections if they're not satifised with the out come.

Speaking with Bishop Reginald Jackson, fill-in co-host and the ever-pompous John Avlon claimed that the law "limits access to the ballot box," and then invited Jackson to grade the corporations on whether they sufficiently oppose the measure: "You spoke to the CEO of Coke earlier this week. Are they doing enough? Or is this too little too late?"

Spoiler alert: Jackson said they hadn't done enough.

 

 

As he followed up, Avlon trumpeted a Pew poll claiming Republican support for making voting easier has plummeted over recent years before posing this question: "But it seems like the big lie has had a big effect, and that's motivating these state legislatures. What's your strategy to try to reach out to Republicans to heal this divide?"

Notably, polling shows that most Americans -- including most African Americans -- support voter ID requirements are never acknowledged by the liberal media who always seek to discredit such measures.

Two days after appearing on MSNBC's The ReidOut, Jackson soon complained that "we are coming to a very dangerous point in this country where we no longer have two political parties. You have the Democratic party and you have cult. And this cult has their policies based on a lie." He added:

And so how much sense does it make if you pass legislation which is based on a lie? And I think Republicans have to decide 00 are they going to deal with truth? Are they going to fantasize over a lie? And those of us who are opposed to what they're trying to do and believe that everybody ought to have a right to vote, then we have to stand on truth and principle, and eventually I think we'll win.

And before closing out that segment, Avlon turned Jackson's primary role as a faith leader and fawned over President Biden and far-left Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) as religious progressives who will help heal America's political divide because they ostensibly make it okay to be religious (and not those icky heretics that MSNBC said will exclusively face God's wrath one day).

In the next hour, co-host Alisyn Camerota interviewed civil rights activists Bernice King and Al Vivien about their efforts to pressure corporations over the Georgia law.

 

 

Without anyone bothering to explain that the new law provides a way to replace inept local election board members to make sure elections will be well-run, Vivien complained about the move: "I'm a former Army captain, so, for me, democracy is immensely important. There is nothing more un-American in a democracy than to take away people's right to vote. That's what makes us a democracy. Killing that is un-American."

This Democrat propaganda pretending to be journalism was sponsored in part by Fast Signs. Their contact information is linked.

Transcripts follow:

CNN's New Day
April 2, 2021
7:43 a.m. Eastern

JOHN AVLON: Joining me now is Bishop Reginald Jackson, who oversees more than 500 AME churches in Georgia. He is among the most vocal opponents of Georgia's new election law, which limits access to the ballot box. Mr. Jackson, it's great to have you hear on New Day. I want to start with the boycott because, a week ago, you announced a boycott going forward against these corporate giants rooted in Georgia -- Coca-Cola, Home Depot, Delta -- because they didn't speak up more firmly against the bill before it passed. Since then, they've started to speak out against it. You spoke to the CEO of Coke earlier this week. Are they doing enough? Or is this too little too late?

BISHOP REGINALD T. JACKSON: Well, it is a combination of all. It is a little too late, but it's not entirely too late. And, in fact, we're glad that they have begun to speak out -- and because the other, Coca-Cola has spoken out, we now see in other states, for example, in Texas where American Airlines is beginning to speak out, so while it has been late, we believe we can still overcome this situation and, in fact, hold back some of this legislation in other states.

(....)

AVLON: Well, look, what you're asking for is to help reverse a law that's been passed. And Georgia has passed their law -- but, as you well know, this is something that's going on nationwide right now. And to get these legislatures -- to convince these legislatures, you're going to have to find a way to reach across the aisle and I want to some statistics from a new Pew poll that came out earlier this month because I think it speaks to the division you got to deal with here -- 85 percent of Democrats say everything possible should be done to make it easier to vote. But just 28 percent of Republicans.

And I want to contrast that on the Republican side to the number just two years ago in 2018, it was nearly half of Republicans said everything should be done to make it easier to vote. But it seems like the big lie has had a big effect, and that's motivating these state legislatures. What's your strategy to try to reach out to Republicans to heal this divide?

JACKSON: Well, first thing I think we have to do is be honest and face the truth. And that is that we are coming to a very dangerous point in this country where we no longer have two political parties. You have the Democratic Party and you have a cult. And this cult has their policies based on a lie. And so how much sense does it make if you pass legislation which is based on a lie? And I think Republicans have to decide --

AVLON: Mmhmm.

JACKSON: -- are they going to deal with truth? Are they going to fantasize over a lie? And those of us who are opposed to what they're trying to do and believe that everybody ought to have a right to vote, then we have to stand on truth and principle, and eventually I think we'll win.

(...)

8:48 a.m. Eastern

CAMEROTA: The Derek Chauvin trial resumes this morning after four days of very emotional testimony. The trial comes at the same time that many states are trying restrict voting rights. And some civil rights activists see a connection.

(...)

BERNICE KING, DAUGHTER OF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR.: The little bit of good that comes out of this does not supersede the very bad that has come out of this. If the bad is very bad, the good is not that great because when you talk about putting local elections throughout the state -- when you talk about taking away local power and removing power from the people's elected officials, the secretary of state, there's no excuse for that. And corporations can do what is necessary to ensure that these kind of things don't happen. And, unfortunately, that did not happen, so we were calling on corporations to, you know, step up to the plate. They made these racial equity commitments down here in Georgia, and this was a chance for them to put it to action.

CAMEROTA: And, Al, it sounds like your letter got their attention. Here is the response from the CEO of Delta and Coca-Cola.

ED BASTIAN, DELTA AIRLINES: When we finally got a chance to see it all put together and had a chance to digest it as well as listen and here from the voices of our people about it, we realized that this was restricting.

JAMES QUINCEY, COCA-COLA: Let me crystal clear and unequivocal. This legislation is unacceptable. It is a step backwards.

CAMEROTA: Now, is that gratifying?

AL VIVIEN, SON OF REVEREND C.T. VIVIEN: Well, it's gratifying, but it was kind of late.

KING: Yes.

VIVEN: I applaud them now coming forward, and I guess I would say to make up for that they and all the other CEOs throughout the country can do is now step up and push for the John Lewis bill to be signed into law and for the We the People -- at the federal level -- law to be signed in, that would supersede and kind of destroy some of the things in these other states because there are -- at last count I saw -- there are 43 different states that are planning very similar actions. And I want to stress that piece about -- so as what Bernice was saying about giving them control to just take away, they could -- basically, by this law, they could supersede any county in the -- in the state. If they didn't like the outcome, they could pretty much override it. I'm a former Army captain, so, for me, democracy is immensely important. There is nothing more un-American in a democracy than to take away people's right to vote. That's what makes us a democracy. Killing that is un-American.