Unassigned

BREAKING: Don Lemon Arrested

Aaron Walker
Aaron Walker  |  8:55 AM on January 30, 2026

We first heard this from Bill Melugin:

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As we write this, we got a breaking news email from CNN that that has his lawyer verifying it, so this report is almost certainly true.

Indeed, now Mr. Melugin has shifted to reporting it as a fact:

Regular readers know that there were rumors that a magistrate judge had admitted that there was probable cause for an arrest, but still refused to sign off on it.

We are sure the left will scream that ‘the Trump administration has arrested a journalist’ but we will offer a more reasoned analysis.

First, just about anyone can be a journalist in this author’s eyes. Journalism is a thing you do, not something you are and, unlike the legal profession, there is no licensing board (nor should there be).

Second, relatedly, wearing a press badge or otherwise presenting yourself as a journalist (validly or invalidly) is not a license to commit crimes. Certainly, we don’t think a press badge allows you to escape justice if you commit a mass shooting as long as you are also reporting on it.

Third, we do tend to think that if the charge amounts to merely observing what these church invaders did, even if he knew ahead of time what they were going to do, then the charge would be unjust under the First Amendment. But if they allege that he participated in the invasion of this church—including participating in the planning of this invasion of the church—then the charge is just. People have a right to film public and newsworthy events, but only so long as they act as an observer, not a participant. We are sure we will see the charges soon, and we can judge at that time which side of the legal line his conduct fell on at that time.

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A few quick reactions:

We can’t verify that claim, and if that is true, we are surprised we didn’t hear about the arrest sooner. Or perhaps it was held back because they felt the awards ceremony would swallow the news? *Shrugs*

Besides Dugan?

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True. That and he will claim this proves Trump is a fascist or something.

Surely that is fake, so we are sure Dick Durbin will put it on the Senate floor.

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