Fox News "Hannity" - Transcript Interview with Lee Zeldin
Interview
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CHAFFETZ: Now, Congressman Zeldin, congratulations. I thought your speech at the RNC was just absolutely fabulous.
But you were also at the White House last night. What was the scene like for you and your wife Diana as you exited the White House?
REP. LEE ZELDIN (R-NY): They were out there crazed and unhinged. These rioters were waiting for us to come out, they were screaming and cursing. They were looking for trouble and physical confrontation.
You can just see it in their eyes and you heard it in their words. Fortunately, the police who were there were taking action to protect those who were trying to leave the White House. Obviously, we're all leaving the White House peacefully after a great fourth night of this Republican National Convention.
So, my colleagues in Congress who are calling for unrest, calling for confrontation, this is what ends up happening and worse. I still remember fresh in my mind what happened to Steve Scalise on that congressional baseball field, if not of those Capitol police officers, there would've been two dozen dead members of Congress and then some.
If what happened last night was happening to -- night happened to a Democratic U.S. senator and it was caused by a Republican group, it would have been top of mind on all the cable news outlets all day long, CNN, MSNBC and every single member of Congress would have to put out statements condemning it.
So, what's crazy, and to Leo's point just now, what's amazing is that we all a few months ago, when we started seeing the burning and the rioting and the looting -- instinctively, we knew that was wrong, we wanted law and order, safety and security for our country. But it's only been in the last 48, 72 hours that now, whether it's Don Lemon on CNN or it's the Biden- Harris ticket, they are starting to condemn it because of polling.
CHAFFETZ: Yeah, no, that's --
ZELDIN: It's not about instincts, and about doing great thing is because they want to win an election.
CHAFFETZ: Yeah. No, that's the way I see the Democrats that run this place.
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