It was the kind of moment that made TV viewers sit up and take notice — not because of what was said, but because of who didn’t say anything at all.
Scott Jennings has made a career out of sparring with political opponents. But on Friday’s “NewsNight with Abby Phillip,” the Republican strategist went uncharacteristically mute as commentator Van Lathan delivered a sharp history lesson on why President Donald Trump’s move to reinstall Confederate statues is an insult to history and Black Americans.
Jennings — normally quick to interrupt or counter especially when Abby Phillip is at the helm— sat still, lips pursed, his face a mask. Viewers noticed and said his silence spoke volumes.
The other panelists condemned Trump’s plan to restore two Confederate monuments in Washington, D.C., including the Albert Pike statue toppled by Black Lives Matter protesters in 2020. But when the camera cut to Jennings — who rarely lets a liberal talking point go unchallenged — he was stone-faced, with no comeback.
Lathan, co-host of the “Higher Learning” podcast, took the floor and didn’t let go, tracing the statues’ roots to “a post-reconstruction time where the Confederate battle flag is adopted, where the Ku Klux Klan arises and comes to power. All for one reason, and these monuments and these people are romanticized all for one reason, to control and terrorize Black people,” he said flatly.
Jennings didn’t flinch. Without interruption, Lathan pressed on:
“So moving away from those monuments, from celebrating those people, is actually a strong sign of actual reconciliation that we don’t want black people to live in fear of racial terror and slavery anymore. And to re-power those things and those images is saying, it’s to me, saying the opposite of that. But here’s the difference. I’m not about to cry over the statue. You know why? Because we’re not scared anymore. We’re not afraid. We never really were. We’re not afraid of statues. We’re not afraid of the cultural terrorists … Our eyes are wide open in terms of what America means for us. And if the president and his administration want to cozy up to the worst parts of American history, we see them. Point, blank, period.”
The only audible voice during Lathan’s sermon was from former Ohio Senator Nina Turner with a “That’s right.”
After the show, Lathan posted the clip to Threads, writing: “Put up all the confederate statues yall want. LOL. We ain’t scared of yall. Lol. We never were. We see yall tho.”
The reaction online was swift, with many users pointing out the unusual quiet from a man often ready to pounce and turn Phillip’s show into a freefall. This segmented was hosted by CNN Anchor John Berman.
One person tagged Jennings directly:
“How did @scottjenningsky manage to shut his hateful mouth and not interrupt?? Oh, yeah— it’s not a Black woman speaking! (eye roll emoji) @abbydphillip please take note.”
Another wrote, “I’ve never seen this bozo so quiet and stoic … so he only bullies women?”
Others speculated Jennings stayed silent because he couldn’t defend Trump’s move without openly siding with white nationalists. As one commenter put it:
“He’s stoic and quiet because he knows this issue is one that no reasonable person should support. He also knows Trump is doing this to appeal to racist and white nationalist in the party. Those lost cause fanatics will never move away from it.”
Plenty just took the opportunity to mock Jennings and his sudden restraint. “I can’t stand that smug dude Scott. Stunned to see him so quiet with nothing to say. Well done brother.” Another added bluntly: “Scott was quiet af this segment. Smug ass.”
Perhaps the harshest jab came from a viewer who wrote:
“Scott’s entire schtick is being a contrarian just for the sake of it. Had Van said he cared about the statues, Scott would’ve come back with talking points supporting them. But since Van was like ‘I really don’t care,’ he took away Scott’s ability to fire back with anything.”
The exchange came after announcements earlier this week that two Confederate monuments in the D.C. area will be restored. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the “Reconciliation Monument” at Arlington National Cemetery — removed in 2023 — will be returned. The National Park Service confirmed that the statue of Albert Pike, the only outdoor Confederate leader memorial in the capital, will be reinstalled in Judiciary Square.
Pike’s statue was pulled down by protesters on Juneteenth 2020 during nationwide demonstrations over the police killing of George Floyd. It had been controversial for decades, with the D.C. Council calling for its removal as far back as 1992. Pike, a brigadier general in the Confederate Army and a revered Freemason leader, was also accused by critics of ties to the Ku Klux Klan, a claim Masons dispute.
The Trump administration frames the restorations as part of a broader campaign to resist what it calls “erasing American history.” In March, Trump issued an executive order directing the Interior Department to restore any statue removed for what he labeled partisan reasons, accusing museums and historic institutions of pushing “divisive, race-centered ideology.”
The price tag for restoring the Arlington monument is jaw-dropping — roughly $10 million — a figure critics say could fund any number of public needs instead of reviving what many view as a shrine to white supremacy. The Pentagon says the project will take about two years, with expenses covering a new base, full refurbishment, and the addition of “context panels” to explain the statue’s history, NBC reported. Opponents argue that no amount of explanatory signage justifies spending millions to re-honor the Confederacy.
For many, the monuments’ return is more than a symbolic gesture — it’s a provocation. After the Charlottesville “Unite the Right” rally in 2017, where white supremacists marched to defend a Robert E. Lee statue, Confederate symbols have been closely tied to extremist movements.
The Pike statue’s return is targeted for October.
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton blasted the Pike restoration, calling it “odd and indefensible,” and reiterated her stance that such statues belong in museums, not public spaces. “A statue honoring a racist and a traitor has no place on the streets of D.C.,” she said, according to the Washington Post.
Great Job A.L. Lee & the Team @ Atlanta Black Star Source link for sharing this story.
