CNN's Cuomo Loses It When Kris Kobach Suggests He Could Support an Openly Racist President

By Aidan McLaughlin Jul 16th, 2019, 9:53 pm

CNN host Chris Cuomo clashed with Republican Senate candidate Kris Kobach after the former Kansas secretary of state said he would support an outwardly racist president.

Kobach defended President Donald Trump’s ugly spat with four Democratic congresswomen of color, whom he told over the weekend to “go back” to where they came from — three were born in the United States, all four are citizens — in comments that have drawn fire from the president’s own party.

After Cuomo made the case that Trump’s attacks were picking a “race battle,” Kobach rejected the comments as racist. The CNN host then proposed a hypothetical.

“What would you do if the president said, ‘I am a racist. That’s why I said it.’ What would you do?” Cuomo asked.

“Uh, then I would not defend him, because there’s no excuse for racism in America,” Kobach responded first.

“Really?” Cuomo asked. “Would you still support him as president?”

Kobach paused. “Uhm. I don’t know.”

“You have to think about it!” Cuomo exclaimed. “You have to think about whether or not you would support a racist! Really!?”

“I’d have to know who was running against him,” Kobach said.

“A racist! An admitted racist you would have to know more?” Cuomo continued, as Kobach stammered. “Kris, come on man. It can’t be that partisan.”

“These are ridiculous hypotheticals,” Kobach protested.

“It’s ridiculous that it took you that long to answer it,” Cuomo said. “You’re running for Senate, and you have to take a pause whether or not if he said he was a racist you’d still support him. Come on, brother.”

Kobach argued Cuomo’s hypothetical “doesn’t even make sense” because “the president has not said anything racist.”

Watch the brutally uncomfortable segment, via CNN:

https://www.mediaite.com/tv/cnns-cuomo-loses-it-when-kris-kobach-suggests-he-could-support-an-openly-racist-president/