It only took a few seconds on live television for a supposedly thoughtful discussion on immigration to turn into a sideshow that had viewers spitting out their coffee. CNN’s Ana Navarro, never shy with the theatrics, managed to take what should have been a policy debate and twist it into something that felt more like a Twitter flame war than a serious panel. And yes, she went there — she went after a colleague’s skin color and gender on air.
This happened Monday night on “CNN NewsNight,” right in the middle of a conversation about Trump-era immigration policies. Brad Polumbo, a conservative journalist with the audacity to offer pushback, dared to call Navarro’s language — calling the former president’s agenda a “reign of terror” — a little over the top. Imagine that. Someone on CNN saying Democrats might be exaggerating. You could practically feel the temperature drop in the studio.
At first, Navarro let it go. The panel moved on. But then she circled back, and this is where it got messy. Looking straight at Polumbo, she declared, “It might be hyperbolic for you as a White man… It’s certainly not hyperbolic for me as a Latino.”
Polumbo didn’t blink. He fired back, “Oh OK, so we’re being racist now?” Navarro denied it, but the damage was done. On live television, the argument shifted from immigration policy to whether it’s fair game to discount someone’s opinion based on skin color and gender. And for millions watching, the irony was hard to ignore: this was coming from the network that loves to lecture the rest of us about tolerance and inclusion.
As Navarro tried to talk over him, Polumbo pressed the point: “To dismiss my opinion for being a White man is racist.” She shouted back, “No, I’m not dismissing your opinion.” But by then the back-and-forth had already spiraled, with Navarro invoking “the Latino community” as if every single Latino in America signed off on her talking points. Polumbo cut in again, reminding her that she doesn’t get to speak for everyone.
Ana Navarro is racist, Abby Phillips is a moron, and @brad_polumbo is a good dude. pic.twitter.com/MxeWncuKCY
— Dave Rubin (@RubinReport) July 15, 2025
The tone kept rising, host Abby Philip tried to regain control, and somewhere in there Navarro asked if Polumbo really believed Latinos weren’t living under different circumstances. Before he could answer, Philip swooped in to defend Navarro, insisting that all she meant was that her perspective was different. Polumbo, visibly frustrated, responded that when you attach someone’s race and gender as the reason their opinion is invalid, you’ve crossed a line.
For anyone keeping score, this wasn’t some shadowy corner of the internet. This was prime-time CNN, with one of their star commentators implying that your skin color and gender can automatically disqualify your point of view. And make no mistake, this isn’t an isolated slip.
This is the kind of double standard Republicans have been pointing out for years — imagine if the roles had been reversed, if a conservative on air told a minority panelist their perspective was invalid because of who they were. The outrage would still be echoing through every newsroom.
Now, viewers are left asking a bigger question. Was this just a hot-headed moment from Navarro, or is it a peek behind the curtain at how some in the media really think when the cameras are rolling and the masks slip just enough to show what’s underneath? And if that’s the case… what’s the next time bomb waiting to go off on live television?
