“This is about scaring other journalists so that other journalists will not cover” the Donald Trump administration, Sunny Hostin said.

The View cohosts warn audience of danger after Don Lemon’s arrest: ‘What do you think will happen to us?’

"This is about scaring other journalists so that other journalists will not cover" the Donald Trump administration, Sunny Hostin said.

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February 2, 2026 1:11 p.m. ET

Sunny Hostin on 'The View'; Don Lemon. Credit:

ABC; Mario Tama/Getty

- *The View *cohosts defended former CNN journalist Don Lemon after his arrest.

- Lemon was taken into custody after a grand jury indicted him on federal charges related to his coverage of a Minnesota protest.

- "Don Lemon is not going to play dead," Ana Navarro said.

*The View* cohosts have rallied together to support one of their own, as the media personalities came to the defense of former CNN anchor Don Lemon amid the on-air broadcaster's recent arrest over allegations that he broke federal law while reporting on an anti-ICE protest in Minnesota.

Days after Lemon, 59, and three other journalists were taken into custody Thursday night after reporting from inside a Minnesota church whose pastor is also an immigration officer, moderator Whoopi Goldberg and panelists Ana Navarro, Sunny Hostin, and Alyssa Farah Griffin defended Lemon at the top of Monday's *View* broadcast.

"This is after they'd gone to three different courts trying to get judges to sign off, and the judges in all three previously cases said to the DOJ, get the hell out of my courtroom, you clowns, there is no case here," Navarro said, referencing a federal magistrate judge's recent blocking of the Justice Department's attempt to charge Lemon over the matter.**

Whoopi Goldberg, Sara Haines, Ana Navarro, Sunny Hostin, and Alyssa Farah Griffin on 'The View'.

She continued, alleging that government officials only "released the news at the exact same time they released the Epstein documents" in a move that was, as she felt, "about gaslighting, this was about going against Don Lemon and other journalists," she said. Navarro also pointed out that the four people arrested all "happen to be Black."

"I think it's to send a chilling message to anybody who's covering facts. For some reason, well, I know the reason, this administration is afraid of people seeing the truth and being informed, and I think they picked on the wrong guy," the Republican cohost expressed. "Don Lemon is not going to play dead. Don Lemon has the wherewithal, has the structure, has the team, has the courage, and has the money to fight this administration, and he's going to take it as far as it goes."

Hostin, a journalist and former federal prosecutor, also defended Lemon, telling the audience "he will have his day in court" and that she thinks "this case will be thrown out" because it "doesn't have any merit," in her opinion.

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She later clarified that Lemon is one of her "dearest friends," and that she "felt terrible" watching news of his arrest.

"I've been with Don in Ferguson, I've been with Don on the ground in South Carolina, Don is a journalist, he's an on-the-ground journalist," Hostin said. "He's been pepper-sprayed, he's been tear-gassed. He was getting the story, and nothing should've gotten in the way of that."

Hostin said she felt that "this is about scaring other journalists so that other journalists will not cover" the Donald Trump administration.

Griffin, who previously worked for Trump during his first term in office, also pointed to what she called hypocrisy among those in power, whom she said have criticized Lemon for being an activist and not a journalist in their view.

Don Lemon at the 2026 Grammys.

Gilbert Flores/Billboard via Getty

However, Griffin noted that they've "put in activists" like Matt Gaetz inside White House and Pentagon briefing rooms.

"If Matt Gaetz is a journalist, Don Lemon is definitely a journalist. You undermine your own point," Griffin said.

Goldberg closed the segment by turning toward *The View*'s in-studio audience to issue a sobering warning: "You see what's happening. You know what's happening. If it's happening like this for someone who is out and clearly doing his job, what do you think will happen to us?"

Earlier in the broadcast, *The View* played a portion of a speech Lemon, who was fired from CNN in 2023 and now works as an independent journalist, gave after his arrest.

"Last night, the DOJ sent a team of federal agents to arrest me in the middle of the night for something I've been doing for the last 30 years, and that is covering the news," he said from a podium. "The First Amendment of the constitution protects that work for me and for countless other journalists who do what I do. I stand with all of them, and I will not be silenced. I look forward to my day in court."

When reached for comment on Friday, Abbe Lowell, Lemon's attorney, said that the former CNN reporter intended to fight the charges after a grand jury indicted him on charges of conspiracy and interference with First Amendment rights of churchgoers who attended the St. Paul's Cities Church mass Lemon covered.

"Don Lemon was taken into custody by federal agents last night in Los Angeles, where he was covering the Grammy awards. Don has been a journalist for 30 years, and his constitutionally protected work in Minneapolis was no different than what he has always done," the statement read.****Lowell continued, “This unprecedented attack on the First Amendment and transparent attempt to distract attention from the many crises facing this administration will not stand. Don will fight these charges vigorously and thoroughly in court."

Attorney General Pam Bondi released a statement of her own, saying in an online video, "Make no mistake. Under President Trump’s leadership and this administration, you have the right to worship freely and safely,” and adding, “And if I haven’t been clear already, if you violate that sacred right, we are coming after you.”**** Lemon was released on a personal recognizance bond on Friday.**

*The View* airs weekdays on ABC.

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