Don Lemon

Lemon says his attorney offered a voluntary surrender that was ignored, making the arrest a deliberate waste of resources meant to intimidate.

“They did it because they want you to be afraid and because they want to embarrass you. I was neither embarrassed nor was I afraid”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 32:17

Lemon reveals that cars parked outside his New York home followed him before the charges were filed, something he says he had never disclosed.

“before that there were people who were parked outside of our home in New York City and would follow us when we got into the car. And I have never said that to anyone”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 32:29

Lemon says the White House's 'when life gives you lemons' post was a test that backfired and that even conservatives found it excessive.

“I do believe, I thought that they, that was sort of a test to see how that went over. And I don't think it played well in the public”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 25:14

Lemon says those prosecuting him are acting with malicious and malevolent intent and should face consequences.

“I think that there is a malicious intent nature of what they're doing. It's malevolent. It's malicious. It's evil”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 14:25

Lemon predicts he will ultimately prevail in the case against him.

“I still think that at the end of the day, it's going to be, I'm going to end up on top. I'm going to end up the winner in this”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 28:55

Lemon says prosecutors were turned down by multiple judges before taking the case to a grand jury.

“I think it was like three different tries or two or three different tries. And everyone said, no, we're not doing this. And then they took it to a grand jury”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 28:08

Lemon says the decision to charge him under the Klan Act was deliberate and that everything this administration does is calculated.

“Is it a deliberate play? Yes, of course it is. I mean, everything is calculated with this administration”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 14:29

Lemon maintains that being present in the church with protesters does not make him a protester rather than a journalist.

“just because I was in a church with protesters does not make me a protester”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 11:21

Lemon says he would defend the right of journalists to publish critical pieces about him, citing a New York Times profile he found fair overall.

“People write things about me all the time that I don't like. And, but I would fight for their ability and their right to be able to say it”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 8:14

Lemon says he is surprised not by how far Trump has gone but by how far the public has permitted him to go.

“I'm surprised at how far we have allowed him to take”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 6:49

Lemon says his arrest matters beyond himself because the corporate media has already been neutered and independent journalists are now the target.

“And my arrest, it's way bigger than me because if they're coming for me, this independent person, they're coming for you But they've already neutered the corporate media”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 3:43

Lemon argues the war and the assault on the press are linked because the administration does not want accurate reporting on the conflict.

“The war and the assault on the press because they don't want people reporting accuracy and what's really happening with the war”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 4:24

Lemon says what he would most like to run is a news organization, believing he could fix most of its problems quickly.

“A news organization. Because I was there, I'd been in the game for so long, and I'm not interested in being the anchor out front”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 1:06:12

Lemon argues that repositioning a news network ideologically is not journalism and predicts CNN will need a miracle if it follows CBS's path.

“So I believe if CNN goes down the same road that CBS does, then they're going to need a miracle to get out of it”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 54:12

Lemon argues networks should not turn credible anchors into podcasters and should hire actual podcasters if they want that format.

“And they shouldn't be trying to be me. If they want podcasters, Alex, hire some podcasters”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 49:47

Lemon says he could run the country better than Donald Trump and would likely have to register as a Democrat to run for office.

“I think I could be president of the United States. I could definitely run this country better than Donald Trump”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 1:05:06

Lemon argues left-leaning independent outlets are transparent about their perspective but still operate from facts, unlike right-wing propaganda.

“They're transparent about it. But at least there's facts and a shared sense of reality, and they're not saying, well, the first lady of France is a man”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 58:39

Lemon says he deliberately built a community rather than a channel because audiences want connection and authenticity.

“So what I did was build a community rather than a channel or a program”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 46:20

Lemon says his comments about Nikki Haley and women's prime were misconstrued and were describing how society treats women rather than his own view.

“But that's how society treats women. And you should know better. So you shouldn't be an ageist when someone has been sexist or misogynistic towards you”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 1:01:11

Lemon argues that grievance politics tricks struggling white Americans into blaming minorities and women rather than economic change.

“Donald Trump is very good, and especially this MAGA, very good at making people feel aggrieved, and that and fear are great motivators”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 19:36

Lemon says his street interviews during the 2024 election revealed pro-Trump sentiment in demographics he had not expected.

“I started hearing a lot of Trump. I like Trump and from demographics that I didn't expect to hear it from”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 41:58

Lemon calls on White House reporters to persist with questions and collectively confront the president when a colleague is insulted.

“They need to continue to ask the question when Donald Trump is being rude”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 38:02

Lemon says a genuine national reckoning on race is impossible while the Trump administration and white Christian nationalism remain dominant.

“I don't think that we are going to do it as long as there is a Trump administration in place, as long as MAGA and Christian nationalism are front and center in this country”

Pod Save America: When Life Gives You Don Lemon (Mar 29, 2026) · Listen from 23:49