Cuomo Slams Nationalism as 'Loaded Term,' Accuses Miller of Having an 'Apparent Affinity' for White Nationalists

Ryan Foley | April 10, 2019
Font Size

The "great debate" on Tuesday's edition of Cuomo Prime Time focused on Rep. Ilhan Omar's tweet describing White House adviser Stephen Miller as a white nationalist. The conversation deflected into a debate about the meaning of the word "nationalism."  CNN Political Commentator Steve Cortes described nationalism as "pride in this country and shared values" including "tolerance, free enterprise, (and) the rule of law."  Host Chris Cuomo asked "how is that different than patriotism?" After Cortes declared that patriotism and nationalism are "synonymous," Cuomo asked "why use...such a loaded term?"  Cortes pushed back on the idea of nationalism as a "loaded term" while Cuomo reiterated that he saw the term as "very loaded." Cortes said it was important to use the term nationalism as an "antithesis to globalism," an idea which Cuomo described as "isolationism." Eventually, the conversation turned back to Miller. Cuomo accused the White House adviser of having "an apparent affinity for people who are part of ugly movements" before trashing his statement on the New Colossus poem on the Statue of Liberty; describing it as "suspiciously similar to what you hear from a Spencer, from what you hear from a Duke." Cuomo's reference to David Duke effectively implied that he agreed with Omar's characterization of Miller as a white nationalist. Cuomo asked Cortes "Why does he use language like that?  Why does he espouse principles that often are found in the mouths of people who believe ugly things about diversity?"

donate