A CNN roundtable discussion got a little tense Thursday as one panelist told another to stop touching him on air.
The awkward exchange took place between Republican strategist Scott Jennings and Bakari Sellers—a former Democratic member of the South Carolina House of Representatives—as they discussed inflation.
Speaking on NewsNight with Abby Phillip, Sellers reached over to Jennings as he said: “What Scott was not accurate about—which kind of happens around the table sometimes, although I know you want to be…”
Jennings interjected to tell Sellers flatly: “Don’t touch me!”
Sellers, laughing awkwardly, asked “I can‘t touch you now?!” while continuing to keep his hand on Jennings’ back. It was at that point that host Abby Phillip decided to step in.
“All right, everybody, keep your hands to yourselves at the table,” she said.
The touchy moment was the latest flashpoint between the two men. In October they clashed over comments Jennings, a former George W. Bush administration official, made about pro-Palestine protestors, comparing them to Adolf Hitler.
Sellers, reacted in shock to the comments, called them “far beyond the pale.”
“The line has been crossed,” Sellers said. “You are over there and the line is behind you to compare college students who are protesting for Palestinian rights to Adolf Hitler.”
Sellers also took Jennings to task on air in May, accusing Jennings of lecturing him “on what Black voters need and want” during a discussion about President Joe Biden’s voter outreach program ahead of the 2024 election.
