Pro-Trump CNN commentator Jeffrey Lord fired after tweeting Nazi salute

The CNN commentator claims he was only "mocking Nazis and Fascists" during a Twitter argument

Published August 10, 2017 6:43PM (EDT)

 (Eric Hananoki)
(Eric Hananoki)

Shortly after CNN commentator and Trump disciple Jeffrey Lord tweeted the Nazi salute "Sieg Heil," he was fired.

"Nazi salutes are indefensible," a CNN spokesperson said in a statement. "Jeffrey Lord is no longer with the network."

Lord, a former staffer under the Reagan administration, was engaging in an argument on Twitter with someone he has quite a bit of history with. "Lord has been harshly critical of the activist he tweeted at, Angelo Carusone, and the liberal group of which Carusone is president, Media Matters for America," CNN reported. "Lord and Carusone have had many sharp disagreements. Media Matters has repeatedly condemned Lord and criticized CNN for employing him as a commentator."

The two have had numerous arguments on prior occasions, and Lord most recently took jabs at Media Matters for taking funds from George Soros.

CNN's Brian Stelter elaborated on their mud-slinging history:

Lord wrote a follow-up column for The American Spectator on Thursday morning, calling Carusone's group the "Media Matters Fascists," casting them as "anti-free speech bigots who, in typical fascist style, make it their mission to shut down speech they don't like."

Media Matters has been promoting an ad boycott against Fox News host Sean Hannity, a friend of Lord's.

Lord said Carusone was playing a "fascist game" by targeting Hannity's sponsors, and said Media Matters has been doing it for years against other conservatives.

"This is America, Angelo. Not Fascist Italy, Nazi Germany or Communist Russia," he wrote.

Lord tweeted the column at Carusone, who responded, "Your headline has a mistake in it." Carusone asked, "Why do you expect anyone to take you seriously when you don't take yourself seriously."

Lord then responded to Carusone's tweet and said "Sieg Heil!" Here is a screenshot of their most recent feud, which ultimately led to Lord's firing.

Screen Shot 2017-08-10 at 5.21.15 PM

Lord continued to defend his tweet, and stated later he was "mocking Nazis and Fascists."

Carusone issued a statement before Lord was fired, which said that "CNN does not seem to hold Jeffrey Lord to any kind of standard."

Lord found out about his firing while in a CNN towncar traveling from Pennsylvania to New York. The car ended up turning back.

But Lord isn't finished cashing in on his beloved president, and he's unlikely to vanish from the public eye.

 


By Charlie May

MORE FROM Charlie May


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Angelo Carusone Cnn Jeffrey Lord Media Media Matters Nazis President Donald Trump White House