‘Cozying up to white people’: Don Lemon blasts Stephen A Smith’s take on Minneapolis ICE shooting
Don Lemon proudly admits that he tries not to criticize black people and calls Stephen A. Smith a disappointment because he won’t bend the knee to the leftist mob.
— Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) January 10, 2026
Lemon then says he gets to decide who represents black people.
He is beyond delusional. He’s also married to a… pic.twitter.com/TSfLkbAxbE
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Former CNN anchor Don Lemon has criticized Stephen A Smith, accusing the sports media personality of turning his back on the Black community to appeal to white audiences.
The feud erupted after Smith defended the ICE agent’s actions in the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good in Minnesota.
Don Lemon mocks Stephen A Smith’s stance on fed agent
During a recent episode of his podcast on Friday, January 9, Don Lemon explained that he usually avoids criticizing other Black people in the media.
He stated, “I try not to criticize especially Black men, or just Black people in general, you know, because we get so much sh*t. The rules are different for us.”
However, he said he felt compelled to speak up because he believes, “But Stephen A Smith goes off and talks about sh*t that he has no idea about.”
Lemon claimed Smith “just gets on these like White boy, right-wing podcasts or his own show and just goes off about Black people and things that for which he has no clue.”
He also mocked Smith’s speaking style, saying it is “shocking” to see him “cozying up to White people” and suggesting that “it’s gotta be for the money.”
Don Lemon slams Smith for defending fatal shooting
The feud began because of how Smith described the shooting of Renee Good, a 37-year-old woman.
Smith told his podcast audience on Thursday that after watching the video, he felt the shooting was “completely justified” from a legal point of view and that the officer shouldn’t be prosecuted.
🚨BREAKING: Stephen A Smith says the ICE SHOOTER in Minneapolis was “COMPLETELY JUSTIFIED”.
— Spencer Hakimian (@SpencerHakimian) January 8, 2026
pic.twitter.com/DxPpMxuzgD
Even though Smith later asked why the officer couldn’t have “shot the tires” or moved out of the way from a “humanitarian” perspective, Lemon felt the damage was already done.
Lemon pointed out that Smith seems to have moved away from sports and into a new career
Don Lemon calls Stephen Smith’s recent actions an embarrassment
The former CNN host argued that Smith is choosing a conservative path because it is more profitable. He joked that if he changed his own views, he would be a "gazillionaire" because being a Black conservative is a "great business move."
Lemon concluded his show by saying that Smith is making a mockery of himself and his heritage.
He told Smith, "Stop it, you’re embarrassing yourself," adding that his behavior is an insult "for the ancestors, for young Black people and for all Black people."
