HOT TOPICS | Trump Wants to Reopen Alcatraz...What Could Go Wrong? - May 6th, 2025
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Why are Don Lemon hosts absent and what’s the show’s opening update?
So yes, as you can see, still not Don. And for those of you that were not with us yesterday, Don is dealing with a family emergency. He is okay, but he currently is unable to be here. So Peter and I will be joining you this morning. I know that we are not Don, and this is the Don Lemon Show, but we will do the best we can to bring you the news and chat with you guys.
Yeah, we have no updates that we can give you right now. As soon as we get more information, we'll tell you. But we are relaying all of your thoughts, all of your prayers, and it means the world to Don. So thank you, guys. What's going on? Where are you all streaming from? Tell us where you are. Tell us what you're doing. Tell us if you're enjoying a cup of tea, a cup of coffee as you stream with us. Nikki, what's going on in the news? What's happening?
Oh. Oh, you know, just another day in paradise. Another constitutional crisis. Just a normal Tuesday in Trump's America.
Yeah, I'll let you guys in on a little secret. So every morning, usually around 8.30 or so, we'll have an editorial call where Nikki, Andy, and I will tell Don about what's going on in the news, what we're seeing on Twitter, what we're seeing on our socials. And sometimes it's just hard to make a show work. But then we say that and we reflect on the fact that there is a TV game show host who is currently sitting in the Oval Office. Also, he happens to be a convicted felon. We're in the midst of a constitutional crisis. The economy is cratering. A trade war is ruining the job prospects for an entire generation right now. And yet, yeah, how can we possibly say there's not much to talk about? How can you possibly say there isn't?
But I digress. Nikki Alcatraz, Alcatraz. Alcatraz is in the news because I think Trump oddly was affected by some of the pushback he's getting to sending innocent men and formerly women to a gulag, a supermax prison in El Salvador. And so now it seems he wants to open one here. What are your thoughts on gulags in America?
Oh, well, you know, I mean, basically the same as my thoughts on gulags in other countries. They're horrific, obviously. I mean, I think the whole point of this, it seems like another one of those silly distractions that he's bringing up, saying something absurd. But I do think that it speaks to a larger trend here with Trump and MAGA, that the cruelty is the point. That Alcatraz has a reputation for inhumane behavior. cruel punishment. And I think he likes that. They want that. They want that image of, it's about the image of having this facility where we can send people where they're isolated and still being treated horrifically. People that are, let's be honest, have not committed crimes that he just decides he doesn't want here based on his racist, xenophobic views.
Also, isn't this going to cost a lot of money?
It is. That's the thing. His lawlessness is expensive. That doesn't get discussed enough. His lawlessness is literally expensive. On the topic of lawlessness, on the topic of his expansion of this crazy, scary ICE police state, Andy, we have a new ad from the Lincoln Project that they just released. It's pretty good. It'll help us wake up. Let's watch it.
Stephen Miller designed it. Donald Trump demanded it. Kristi Noem and Holman ordered you to do it. Illegal deportations. Mass raids. Rounding up people who are here legally. Arresting citizens. Family separations. Snatching students off the street for tweeting. Detention without hearings. Shipping them to foreign prisons. Deportations defying court orders. When government agents like you abuse your power, when you trample civil and constitutional rights, you can be held personally liable in civil court. You can lose everything. And Trump can't pardon you. That includes ICE. That includes CBP, contractors, DOJ, even the White House. Yep, every last Trump official pulling the strings. Even, well, especially the lawyers.
If you think you're safe behind badges and titles, you're wrong. You do a hard, dangerous job. You're vital to our security. But what they have you doing now isn't law enforcement.
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Chapters
4 chapters
1
Why are Don Lemon hosts absent and what’s the show’s opening update?
0:00–6:53
2
How did Trump first announce the idea to reopen Alcatraz and what did he say?
6:53–22:21
3
Could Trump have been inspired by movies—did he watch Escape from Alcatraz?
22:21–30:35
4
What are critics saying—how did the hosts react to Trump’s Alcatraz pitch?
30:35–46:32