Timcast IRL — January 20, 2026

DOJ CONFIRMS Don Lemon, Leftists, To Face Charges For Storming Church w/ Nick Fuentes

Episode Overview

In this heated episode, Tim Pool and the Timcast IRL crew examine the bombshell news that the DOJ, under public comments by Harmeet Dhillon, has confirmed intentions to pursue charges against Don Lemon and a group of leftist activists for “storming” a church in Minneapolis. The episode is centered on the legal, political, and cultural fallout from this event, juxtaposing it with the perceived double standard in law enforcement regarding left- and right-wing protestors. Guest Nick Fuentes joins a lively panel (including Ian Crossland, Tate Brown, and Phil Labonte) to dissect these headlines, wade into the ongoing breakdown of public order in cities like Minneapolis, and explore broader issues like demographic change, racial politics, Israel, and conservative infighting.

Key Discussion Points

1. The Don Lemon/Church Storming Story

• [00:40] Host Tim Pool opens by calling the situation the "epitome of irony" that Don Lemon — a “gay black man” — faces criminal charges on MLK Day under the KKK Act:

  • “We live in a simulation. There’s no way any of this is real.”

• Lemon is accused of participating with a group of leftist activists who “stormed” a church during mass, potentially violating the FACE Act and the KKK Act.

• Harmeet Dhillon (DOJ) has gone on-record saying they are assembling charges.

• Lemon’s defense centers on journalism and First Amendment claims, which hosts and guests argue don't apply if you knowingly abet a crime.

  “Don Lemon being part of a group that broke into a church violates 1A. It is not 1A itself, like he tried to claim.” — Tim Pool [00:40]

2. Legal Analysis & Parallels to J6/Charlottesville

• [06:02] Harmeet Dhillon (clip):

  “We will pursue charges in this case... The FACE Act has been mentioned as one of the predicates... Who funded this? Did anyone cross state lines to do this? All of those are potential predicates for additional federal charges.”

• Tim Pool lays out the prosecutorial double standard, contrasting slow-walking on Left violence versus shock-and-awe tactics used on right-wingers (Charlottesville, Jan 6).
• Panel discusses whether Lemon’s participation would be treated differently if he was covering a right-wing action (e.g., storming into a synagogue).
• Nick Fuentes [11:22]:

  “...the reason these people are so bold... is because there's never any consequences for the left... With the right, they just get the book thrown at them... I think you gotta crush them. You gotta make an example out of them.”

3. Debate Over Penalties and Martyrdom

• Panelists raise concerns over possible overcharging and turning Lemon into a free speech “martyr.”

• Tim Pool’s take:

  “I think Don Lemon should get a slap on the wrist... Six months court supervision. Thank you, and have a nice day.” [14:30]

• Phil Labonte argues:

  “...throw the book at him, though, because it will actually set a precedent...” [16:54]

• Consensus forms that the activists should face stiffer charges than Lemon for leading the action.

4. The FACE Act, KKK Act, & Legal Irony

• Panel relishes the poetic “irony” of the KKK Act being used against Don Lemon.

  “It would be like a really beautiful poetic thing... get a gay black guy charged on MLK Day with the Klan Act.” — Tate Brown [23:01]

• Primer on the FACE Act:

  “...protects access to reproductive health care facilities and places of religious worship. It prohibits the use of force, threats, force, physical obstruction or property damage...” — Phil Labonte [21:41]

5. Minneapolis: Civil Unrest & Media Gaslighting

• Ongoing chaos in Minneapolis is discussed:

  • Storming churches, beating/harassing pedestrians, property destruction, leftists acting as vigilantes and “de facto” authorities (demanding people pull over, present credentials, etc.)

• New York Times headline: “In Minneapolis, I glimpsed the civil war.”

• Pool criticizes fact-checkers for denying documented events.

  “We are getting to the point where you're gonna walk down the street and some leftist... is gonna say 'you're being detained. We're in control now.’” — Tim Pool [54:20]

6. Political Double Standards & The 2026 Election Cycle

• Discussion turns to coming midterms and the inevitability of Democrat resurgence if current trends continue.
• Nick Fuentes:

  “The left does not play. They said, you know, 'we need fu Democrats.' That's all they've ever been... And we are all toast when that happens.” [56:24]

7. Race, Demographics, and National Identity Debate

• Extended exchange (with Fuentes center stage) on how demographic change, DEI policies, and “white affinity groups” are fostering a future surge in "white identity politics."
• Fuentes argues:

  “The diversification of America makes that an inevitability because people define themselves by distinction... Now they're starting to say, no, I'm a white person in a diverse country... You almost become more white the less white the country becomes.” [32:34]

• Detailed debate over whether culture, race, or both are at the root of America’s challenges; comparison of assimilation, segregation, and how “liberal experiments” at integration have failed in real-world urban settings.
• Tim Pool reflects:

  “You can talk about how the world is supposed to be... These realities exist and all these liberals that are trying to say blank slate and otherwise, I just say to them, look, I’m never gonna hold someone back because of their race. Prop them up... But you’re not gonna be able to advance this realistically when you can go to any city and people choose to segregate based on race.” [45:44]

8. Israel, Conservatism, & Media Realignment

• Pool and Fuentes agree there’s a major realignment underway: establishment figures are shifting right, while anti-Zionist arguments are being “poisoned” via extreme voices like Candace Owens.

• Discussion of Israel’s role in US foreign policy, the “liberal economic order,” and connections between military choke points (Suez, Panama, Greenland) and the defense of Israel.

  “...so much of the pro Israel stuff has a home in the GOP. They're inextricable. You don’t get one without the other. And my issue with it is that a lot of Republicans think we are making a deal…” — Nick Fuentes [76:59]

• Tim Pool suggests the right is becoming the new establishment; the system exerts pressure on Trump and others to perpetuate, not challenge, the status quo.

9. Candace Owens, Conspiracy, and Controlled Opposition

• In-depth discussion on Owens’ recent, highly conspiratorial pivots (e.g., “Charlie Kirk is a murdered time traveler”), her usefulness in “poisoning the well” of anti-Zionism.

• Tim Pool:

  “Candace is capturing the anti Zionist faction and saying stupid retard things... They want the moderates, the Tim Pools, the Joe Rogans to be like, ‘oh, what CBS is doing is fantastic.’ Run by a proud Zionist... This says to me that I’m not so sure Democrats get into power and actually start doing all of these arrests.” [67:36]

• Cites operation techniques like "well poisoning" and letting the “kooks” dominate the conversation to discredit rational opposition.

10. Complaints of Conservative Inaction

• Repeated frustration from Fuentes that Trump/right-wing elites lack resolve to deliver on base priorities (“mass deportations, crushing the left”).
• Nick Fuentes:

  “...the right was never more powerful than... 2024. When Trump gets in power, it's the opposite... The left probably would have gotten charged up anyway... But you know, by the way, Trump is getting rich off this... Meanwhile, you got this kind of stuff going on. And it's like at the end of the day, Trump can pardon himself and all his people. We don't get pardons. We're boned.” [61:57]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Don Lemon & Legal Irony

• Tim Pool [00:40]:
  "Don Lemon, a gay black man, is facing criminal charges on MLK Day for violating the KKK Act. And I have no words. I can only say we live in a simulation."
• Tate Brown [23:01]:
  “If we can get a gay black guy charged on MLK Day with the Klan act, I mean, it’d be like a really beautiful poetic thing.”
• Phil Labonte [21:41]:
  “The FACE Act... prohibits the use of force threats, force, physical obstruction or property damage to interfere with individuals making or seeking providing reproductive health services or exercising their first amendment right to religious freedom. This is a slam dunk.”

On Double Standard

• Nick Fuentes [18:40]:
  “There’s never any accountability with the right... But the left knows they get away with literally murder and every other thing. So I think you got to crush them... the next time people think twice and say, I don’t know, should we storm the church?”
• Phil Labonte [16:54]:
  “...throwing the book at him, though, is because it will actually set precedent that the administration is going to come down. Right now, [the administration] has a very bad track record so far.”

On Racial & Demographic Politics

• Nick Fuentes [32:34]:
  “I think that the diversification of America makes that an inevitability because people define themselves by distinction.”
• Tim Pool [45:44]:
  “You can say anything you want about racism... These realities exist and all these liberals that are trying to say blank slate and otherwise, I just say to them, look, I’m never gonna hold someone back because of their race... But you’re not gonna be able to advance this realistically when you can go to any city and people choose to segregate based on race.”

On Media Poisoning

• Tim Pool [67:36]:
  “Candace Owens is capturing the anti Zionist faction and saying stupid retard things. CBS News is targeting the moderates... This says to me that I’m not so sure Democrats get into power and actually start doing all of these arrests.”
• Nick Fuentes [76:59]:
  “...so much of the pro Israel stuff has a home in the GOP. They're inextricable. You don’t get one without the other.”

On Right-Wing Inaction

• Nick Fuentes [61:57]:
  “Trump can pardon himself and all his people. We don't get pardons. We're boned. Like, when the left gets in, there's no refuge. We're just screwed.”
• Tim Pool [58:18]:
  “You know, I don't think we should send in the troops. I'll tell you why. The left, the communist momentum, wants the government to establish a fascist crackdown so they can say, 'see, we told you they're fascist.'"

Timestamped Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | Summary/Highlight | |-----------|----------------------------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 00:40 | Don Lemon/Church story intro | Irony of Klan Act prosecution of Lemon | | 06:02 | Harmeet Dhillon DOJ segment | Announcement of intent to prosecute Lemon & leftist activists | | 11:22 | Fuentes: Double standard in prosecutions | “There’s never any consequences for the left” | | 14:30 | “Slap on the wrist” debate | What actual punishment is appropriate for Lemon? | | 23:01 | Irony of Klan Act / poetic justice | Tate Brown’s “beautiful poetic thing” | | 32:34 | White identity/ demographic change | “You almost become more white the less white the country becomes.” | | 45:44 | Pool on urban racial politics & failed integration | “People choose to segregate based on race.” | | 56:24 | 2026 midterms/ political forecasts | Fuentes: “We're all toast when that happens.” | | 67:36 | Pool on Candace Owens & “poisoning the well” | “CBS News is targeting the moderates who left the left…” | | 76:59 | Pro-Israel GOP alliance | “So much of the pro Israel stuff has a home in the GOP. They're...inextricable.” |

Episode Tone and Language

Tim Pool maintains his skeptical, sardonic tone, emphasizing the irony, confusion, and double standards in current politics (“We live in a simulation...”). Nick Fuentes comes off as combative and direct, pushing unapologetically right-wing and identitarian talking points, often challenging the panel’s assumptions. The extended panel conversation is brash, frequently abrasive and highly uncensored, reflecting the “IRL” brand.

Conclusion

This episode of Timcast IRL dives deep into the legal and cultural chaos engulfing America in 2026, with the Don Lemon church story serving as a flashpoint for wider debates about the rule of law, biased prosecution, demographic change, the future of the Right, and the persistent influence of Israel on American politics. At every turn, the tension between taking principled stands and simply retaliating against the other political tribe is front and center, with no easy answers on the horizon.

For anyone wanting a raw, unfiltered look at the current right-of-center worldview — including its deep fissures and controversies — this episode provides a comprehensive, timestamped view of the issues and arguments animating American political life in 2026.

For more, see the uncensored aftershow on Rumble.