Former CNN anchor Don Lemon speaks to the press as he leaves federal court after an appearance following his arrest for involvement in a protest at a church in Minnesota, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., January 30, 2026. REUTERS/Jill Connelly
Journalist Don Lemon's arrest and indictment by the Trump administration promoted howls of outrage from press figures around the country on Friday — but as far as Florida gubernatorial candidate James Fishback is concerned, he could have been lynched instead.
"Don Lemon is lucky he's not getting hanged in the public square for ransacking a church," Fishback posted to X.
Lemon, who is Black, was on the scene as a reporter covering a protest at Cities Church in Minnesota, where a group of activists disrupted a sermon to demonstrate against one of the pastors working for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Many of the other activists have been arrested and charged under the FACE Act, a federal statute that has long been used to prevent anti-abortion activists from blocking the entrances to clinics.
There is no indication Lemon himself even took direct part in the protest; nonetheless, the indictment secured by the Trump administration accuses him of "intimidating multiple persons" during the service.
Fishback, a hedge fund CEO, has tried to gain traction in the Florida gubernatorial Republican primary in part by hurling a steady stream of racial slurs at his Black opponent, Rep. Byron Donalds. He has called Donalds a "slave" who was "auctioned off for $31 million" to business interests, and also posted, “By’rone wants to turn Florida into a Section 8 ghetto.”
President Donald Trump has endorsed Donalds, a longtime MAGA ally in the House, to replace the outgoing Gov. Ron DeSantis, which leaves Fishback fighting an uphill battle for the nomination.