In the opening segment of Tuesday’s CNN This Morning, host Audie Cornish and her panel defended Jimmy Kimmel’s “expectant widow” comments and also discussed the aftermath of the third Trump assassination attempt at the White House Correspondents' Dinner. The panel blamed Trump as the reason for the political violence, which Cornish called the debate over violence and rhetoric “nonsensical” after she played a clip of Charlamagne tha God.  One panelist, The Wall Street Journal’s Sabrina Rodriguez, even echoed the words of Jimmy Kimmel from Monday night, where the late-night host told Melania Trump to tell her husband to tone down his rhetoric amid the violence against him. To start the discussion, former George W. Bush administration official Ashley Davis actually called Kimmel, simply, unfunny, but stopped short of a relation to the comments as a call for assassination: “Actually, I just - I did whisper, I don't think he's funny, but I don't - that's what it was more than anything. But no, I listen, obviously, I do not think he said that to call action to an assassination. I think that's a very big stretch.”   Tuesday's CNN This Morning blamed Trump's rhetoric for the violence against himself, as host Audie Conrish called the constant post-attack rhetoric debates "nonsensical." She also played a clip from Charlamagne tha God saying he was sick of calls to tone down the rhetoric. pic.twitter.com/gfOzlfOLvY — Nick (@nspin310) April 28, 2026   Davis pointed out how the discussion after the WHCD had devolved into harsh rhetoric once again, after she “thought it was going to be a little bit better, that we were going to have a little bit more,” but “it's already now even going - it's almost even worse.” Democratic Strategist Chuck Rocha blamed social media algorithms for a rise in violence, as he called social media rhetoric a “reward system”: (...) in the algorithms, and even in democratic and Republican fundraising, you're literally rewarded for saying hateful stuff on the internet. Later, Cornish began to play a stretch of soundbites. She led with a video of Republican lawmakers' comments that accused Democrats of stoking political violence due to their rhetoric that compared Trump to fascists. The clips included Sen. Eric Schmidt’s (R-MO) mention of Dems “referring to ICE agents as the Gestapo. Trump's secret police,” as he called it a “sickness.” Another clip played of Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), where he said Democrats “incited violence” as they were “calling for war.”  After she framed the Republican views, she played a clip from Charlamagne tha God where Charlamagne said, “Whenever there is some type of political violence that happens that, you know, one of these events, people always say, so are we going to tone down the violent rhetoric towards Trump? Stop it. Like, I'm sick of that narrative.”  The radio host then said the question about rhetoric needed to be directed to Trump as he said, “‘Hey, Trump, it’s clear that you’re the drama.” Pure victim blaming. After Charlamagne played, Rodriguez echoed the comments of Kimmel’s Monday late-night program: Well, I will say, I mean, Jimmy Kimmel and speaking last night, one of the quotes that he said was he said to Melania Trump, to the first lady, he said, 'Why don't you talk to your husband about that?’ Rodriguez’s quotation of Kimmel may not be the best idea to tone down the rhetoric, given his recent comments. Cornish ended as she called the debate over violence “nonsensical”: And also the way lawmakers kind of collapse into a nonsensical debate about rhetoric after every violent event. Like, I think the public feels like we're over it. The debate over political violence was not nonsensical when the president of the United States has faced at least three assassination attempts. As Republicans were called “fascists,” it was no surprise that there is a rise in violence against conservative figures. The transcript is below. Click "expand": CNN This Morning April 28, 2026 6:04:00 AM (...) AUDIE CORNISH: First, I want to come to you, Ashley, because even as we talked about the fact that we were going to talk about this on the show, you said Kimmel was in the wrong. Can you talk about that?  Because originally his jokes were made way before the dinner and I think it will be pretty easy for people to call up clips and tape of all kinds of people on the political spectrum, making all kinds of inappropriate jokes that look different today. ASHLEY DAVIS: Actually, I just - I did whisper, I don't think he's funny, but I don't that's what it was more than anything. But no, I listen, obviously, I do not think he said that to call action to an assassination. I think that's a very big stretch.  But I do think that, first of all, he's going to get canceled anyway, eventually, because he doesn't have any viewers. I mean that's going to be his real problem more than he made inappropriate comments. But I think that them calling for him to step down, whether it's the first lady or the president, it's really not in their position to be able to do that. And so it's going to be a back-and-forth.  I'm actually very disappointed. I mean, I was at the dinner, you were at the dinner that day. I thought it was going to be a little bit better, that we were going to have a little bit more. We were going to start treating each other a little bit better since that. And it's already now even going, it's almost even worse. CHUCK ROCHA: There's something going on that we haven't talked about enough. For the last three days, we've talked about how both sides, whatever. The key to this is, there's rewards for that. And that's what we haven't talked about is in my world, in politics every day, the more crazy you can be talking about the way you feel about Donald Trump or the crazy Democrats can be talking about whatever the thing is, in the algorithms, and even in democratic and Republican fundraising, you're literally rewarded for saying hateful stuff on the internet. That wasn't around 15 years ago. CORNISH: Let me - to talk about that, I'm glad you brought it up. In a Gallup poll from October 2025, I'm going to put this up for folks, when the public was asked what factors are to blame for political violence, here's what you told Gallup at that time. Number one, extremist viewpoints on the internet. Inflammatory language by politicians was, you know, a decent second. And then other things that were not even touching on in this debate, mental health system and easy access to guns politically, these two conversations seem to be completely moribund for reasons that I don't know.  But we are talking a lot about the president's ballroom and his push security wise. Now he has a reason to go to the court and say, well, look, now I really need it. It's not just esthetic. SABRINA RODRIGUEZ: I mean, I think just one fact check for us on that is the fact that even if the WHCA, the White House Correspondents Association, said that they wanted to do the dinner in this White House Ballroom, they would not be able to do it. It's too small for the size of the event. Just [laughter] - CORNISH: To let people know, the plans are supposed to be a for a ballroom that will hold 2000.  RODRIGUEZ: A thousand.  CORNISH: Yeah, around 1000 people. And this dinner, which is a, frankly, cattle call, is more than 2000 people jammed into that room. RODRIGUEZ: Which you very much feel in the presence. But that's like a minor factor to all of this. But I think we're seeing so many tweets about this and saying, "This is why we need the ballroom.” This ballroom would not address this in particular.  But I think that there needs to be a larger conversation, like Chuck said. about the social media of it all. I think that unfortunately, there have been many shootings in America, and - CORNISH: That's not what's happening. Can I just play for you something? These are Republicans blaming Democrats. First of all, I just want to give you a mash of sort of the last couple of days of how this has been playing out. [Cuts to video clips] SEN. ERIC SCHMITT (R-MISSOURI): Why are we here? The Democrats have used rhetoric referring to ICE agents as the Gestapo. Trump's secret police. They can't help themselves. Like, this is a real sickness. SPEAKER MIKE JOHNSON (R-LA): They've incited violence, in my view. I mean, you have some of the most prominent figures in the House and the Senate on the Democrat side, effectively, you know, calling for war. ACTING AG TODD BLANCHE: When you have reporters, when you have media just being overly critical and calling the president horrible names for no reason and without evidence, without proof. It shouldn't surprise us that this type of rhetoric takes place. [Cuts back to live] CORNISH: And then I want to play for you one more. This is from Charlamagne Tha God. Using this because this is a person who is speaking to the public back and forth, being in that dialog, especially on social media. And he responded this way. [Cuts to video] CHARLAMAGNE THA GOD: Whenever there is some type of political violence that happens that, you know, one of these events, people always say, so are we going to tone down the violent rhetoric towards Trump? Stop it. Like, I'm sick of that narrative. I need every single media personality to direct that energy and that question towards one person and one person only, and that person is President Donald J. Trump. At what point do people simply say, " Hey, Trump, it's clear that you're the drama.” [Cuts back to live] RODRIGUEZ: Well, I will say, I mean, Jimmy Kimmel and speaking last night, one of the quotes that he said was he said to Melania Trump, to the first lady, he said, “why don't you talk to your husband about that?” And I think it speaks. CORNISH: Yeah. I was playing that one because it's like it feels it also feels like a very common sentiment that after more than a decade, the sense is when Trump says something, it's supposed to be like, look, it's Trump being Trump. He just says things, you know, like that civilization, wipe it out. Whatever it is.  And also the way lawmakers kind of collapse into a nonsensical debate about rhetoric after every violent event. Like, I think the public feels like we're over it. DAVIS: I'm actually surprised that we were not having more conversation about gun control, because that's not even - I'm not even hearing that at all. CORNISH: Are you surprised? Really? ROCHA: That's so 2010. CORNISH: But yeah, I feel like that now. That's out the window. (...)