On Tuesday’s episode of “The Andrew Klavan Show,” Klavan talks about how CNN defended Chris Cuomo when he threatened to throw a man down a flight of stairs. Video and partial transcript below:
I thought I came up with calling Cuomo “Fredo,” but it was Rush Limbaugh. I can see the point he was way up before me on this. Some people accuse me of taking things from other people. I almost never do but Rush did get this first. He calls [Cuomo] Fredo which is very, very appropriate. Why? Because Fredo is the dumb brother in “The Godfather.” So [Fredo] is from a big powerful Italian family like Chris Cuomo, and he’s the dumb guy. So some guy comes up to him and pretends that he thinks his name is really Fredo, and Chris Cuomo just goes off and it was all caught on video here it is.
FREDO: I can handle things! I’m smart! Unlike everybody says, I’m dumb. I’m smart and I want respect!
So that was … that was Cuomo? Was that Cuomo? That was Cuomo, right? Or was that Fredo? Or was that — maybe it was Cuomo. I’m not sure anymore. Let’s let’s play the other one, and this one is either Cuomo, in fact, going after this guy, or it’s another scene from “The Godfather.”
CUOMO: No, punk [inaudible] from the Right call me Fredo. My name is Chris Cuomo. I’m an anchor on CNN. Fredo is from the Godfather. He was their weak brother, and they used it as an Italian aspersion. Any of you Italian? Are you Italian?
MAN: I’m a little bit. I got a little —
CUOMO: It’s a [expletive] insult to your people. It’s an insult to your [expletive] people. It’s like the N-word for us. Is that a cool [expletive] thing?
MAN: You’re a much more reasonable guy in person than you seem to be on television.
CUOMO: Yeah, well if you wanna play, then we’ll [expletive] play. You got something you want to say about what I do on television, then say it [inaudible].
MAN: Hey man listen, I don’t want any problems, bro.
CUOMO: You’re going to have a big [expletive] problem.
MAN: What’s the problem?
CUOMO: It’s a little different on TV. Don’t insult me like that.
MAN: I didn’t insult you.
CUOMO: You call me Fredo, it’s like I call you punk [expletive]. You like that? You want that to be your nickname?
MAN: I didn’t call you that, I —
CUOMO: You called me Fredo. You know my name’s not [expletive] Fredo.
MAN: I thought that’s what your name was.
CUOMO: You did not think my name was [expletive] Fredo, don’t be a liar. [Inaudible] stand up like a man.
MAN: I’m standing up.
CUOMO: You want to be a man, I’m here.
MAN: I’m standing up.
CUOMO: Then [expletive] own it. Then own what you said. Then own what you said.
MAN: Listen man, I don’t have any problem with you.
CUOMO: Yeah, you’re going to have a problem.
MAN: What, what are you gunna do about it?
CUOMO: I’ll [expletive] ruin you. I’ll [expletive] throw you down these stairs like a [expletive] punk.
So CNN defended him. That’s actually indefensible. It is indefensible to have your employee go out and threaten to throw somebody down a flight of stairs. That’s indefensible — to have a public figure do that — especially a guy who’s in the news business. He’s doing it because he’s irrelevant. He’s doing it because they go — you know listen. It’s hard work coming on and doing commentary. It’s hard work coming on and doing reporting. But when you have become a laughing stock — he is Fredo. I mean, he’s a laughingstock. When you’ve become a laughingstock, it’s aggravating. He’s angry. You know he’s angry.
Then, Trump — Trump goes after him. The one thing you gotta say about Trump is [that] he has got an instinct for insulting people. He sends out a tweet and says: “Would Chris Cuomo be given a red flag for his recent rant?… Filthy language and a total loss of control. He shouldn’t be allowed to have any weapon. He’s nuts!”
So he’s going after these supposed red flag laws that they want to get people — to get crazy people not to get their hands on guns. He’s saying how easy it would be to call somebody crazy. [Cuomo] should not have been defended by CNN. They should suspend him. I mean that. Really, really you cannot have your people threatening the public. When you’re basically there to communicate with the public, threatening the public — to throw him down a flight of stairs.
Cuomo comes out and says, “Appreciate all the support but — truth is I should be better than the guys baiting me. This happens all the time these days. Often in front of my family. But there is a lesson: no need to add to the ugliness; I should be better than what I oppose.”
But I mean, really … it’s just irrelevant what you’re saying. It’s the guy going to work every day and doing a job that no longer means anything because they have lost the reason for doing it.