CNN could find itself in legal hot water after an exchange between Scott Jennings and Cameron Kasky led to the claim that President Donald Trump was "provably" part of a "human sex-trafficking ring," an obvious reference to Jeffrey Epstein's crimes. As you'll see in the transcript, Kasky, who is now a CNN commentator for reasons that escape me, didn't equivocate when he made the statement and went on to double down when asked to clarify.
Here was a bit of what went on during the segment, with Kasky telling Jennings that he's not allowed to use the term "illegal" anymore regarding immigration enforcement. Instead, the activist asserts that ICE is targeting "natural born U.S. citizens." That's obviously not true, but it isn't what was legally questionable.
Related: High School Kid Tells Marco Rubio He's Just Like School Shooter Nikolas Cruz
“How are you going to enforce your edict on me, just out of curiosity?”
— Scott Jennings (@ScottJenningsKY) January 20, 2026
That’s the thing about the left - deep down, they believe they should decide who gets to speak and what everyone can and cannot say.
F**k. That. pic.twitter.com/n3z6HbPXfD
It's this next part where things get more dicey for both CNN and Kasky.
A smug 25-year-old leftist activist just got HUMBLED live on CNN by Scott Jennings.
— Overton (@overton_news) January 20, 2026
Cameron Kasky claimed President Trump was part of a “human sex-trafficking network” — and for a moment, the panel let it slide.
Until @ScottJenningsKY stepped in and FORCED the host John Berman… pic.twitter.com/wRxV2sQ3B5
KASKY: I am appreciative that the president is being transparent about this. I would love it if he was more transparent about the human sex-trafficking network that he was a part of, but you can’t win them all.
BERMAN: Cameron’s grateful that the president is being transparent about the Nobel Peace Prize and his desires for Greenland. Scott, what do you think about that?
JENNINGS: You’re going to let that sit? Are we going to claim here on CNN that the president is part of a global sex trafficking ring, or...?
The sheer hackery it takes for John Berman to gloss over what Kasky said, which could very well be libelous, and then present his statement as a perfectly normal facet of debate, is hard to fathom. I know CNN sees itself as a resistance apparatchik, but you'd think they'd have some sense of self-preservation, given several other networks have already paid a steep legal price for allowing stuff like that on the air. Never mind that Jennings is a far more valuable on-screen asset for the network than a mindless nobody like Kasky. Maybe offering a bit more respect to the guy helping keep the lights on would be warranted. Instead, Berman snarks back not at Kasky but at Jennings.
BERMAN: Well, we’re going to talk about the Epstein files. Scott, I will do the fact-checking as we go along here. Repeat what you said about the global sex trafficking ring.
You'd think Berman would be more offended by the person who made a possibly libelous comment that could get the entire network in legal trouble. For his ire to instead be pointed at Jennings just for asking that the record be corrected is telling.
So how did Kasky respond when asked to reiterate his claim? He doubled down, claiming that Donald Trump was "provably" very involved with it.
KASKY: That Donald Trump was provably very involved with it.
Again, there's no ambiguity there. "Provably" indicates Kasky is claiming a statement of fact. Certainly, it's going to be tough to argue he meant something else, especially when he was given a chance to backtrack and offer a few weasel words to cover his and CNN's backside, yet refused to do so.
At that point, Berman seemed to realize he had to say something, with his producer no doubt yelling in his ear. Instead of outright countering Kasky's false claim, though, he simply stated that Trump had never been charged with any crimes related to Epstein, trying to paint the exchange as just a normal discussion. Okay, but not being formally charged with a crime doesn't disprove involvement in something, and by not directly countering Kasky's false statement without qualifiers, Berman left it hanging out there largely unchallenged.
Incredibly, Kasky attempted to triple down, but Berman managed to talk over him, sarcastically asking Jennings if he's satisfied.
BERMAN: Okay, we'll get to that later. Donald Trump has never been charged with any crimes in relation to Jeffrey Epstein. But we'll talk about the Epstein files later.
KASKY: Yeah, but let's be...let's be serious.
BERMAN: (Looks at Jennings) Satisfied?
I don't know if Jennings was satisfied, but I'd bet CNN's lawyers weren't. Having arrogant brats like Kasky on air without enforcing boundaries is a good way to end up getting sued. Keep in mind that ABC News settled with Trump for $15 million in damages after one of its on-air personalities falsely claimed that Trump had "raped" E. Jean Carroll. Claiming he was part of a "human sex-trafficking ring" doesn't strike me as any less serious. I'm sure there will be an internal email sent, but perhaps CNN should be a bit more selective of who they put on air. If I were Trump, at the very least, I'd try to extricate a formal correction and apology from CNN and Kasky.
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