'I'm Happy Donald Trump Is Miserable': CNN's Van Jones Takes a Jab at the President During Midterm Coverage

CNN political commentator Van Jones could barely contain his excitement over Democrats' sweeping midterm victories on Tuesday, 3 November, declaring he was happy that President Donald Trump was 'miserable' as Republicans suffered major electoral setbacks.

During the network's live election coverage, Jones celebrated historic Democratic gains, sparred with conservative commentator Scott Jennings, and compared Republican loyalty to Trump to the Jonestown tragedy.

Van Jones Celebrates as Democrats Make History

'Can I be happy for my party?' Jones asked during CNN's election-night panel. 'I don't want to talk about Donald Trump anymore,' he added, prompting fellow panellist Kasie Hunt to interject, 'But they're going to talk about Donald Trump.' Jones refused to let the discussion dampen his mood.

'I'm happy, you're not going to steal my joy,' he declared. Jones highlighted historic Democratic victories, including Chris Pappas becoming the first openly gay man elected to the US Senate and Juliana Stratton becoming Illinois' second Black female senator.

Jones also hailed what he described as three Black governors serving simultaneously and predicted that Democrats would elect a Black speaker of the House. 'I'm happy Donald Trump is miserable, and I'm happy tonight,' he said. His remark reflected his assessment of Trump's reaction rather than any confirmed account of the president's private feelings.

'Christmas, a Birthday and the Easter Bunny'

Earlier in the broadcast, CNN anchor Anderson Cooper asked whether the election results were bigger than Jones had expected. Jones described the Democratic victories as exceeding expectations, comparing the night to several celebrations rolled into one.

'This is like Christmas, and a birthday and the Easter Bunny, and Halloween. This is the repudiation of Trump-ism that people have been hoping for, seeing American democracy stand up,' he said. Meanwhile, Jennings, CNN's conservative political commentator, visibly rolled his eyes as Jones continued celebrating.

Jones Compares Republican Loyalty to a Deadly Cult

The exchange escalated when Jones invoked Jonestown, where more than 900 people died in a 1978 mass murder-suicide in Guyana. 'If you join a cult, at some point, the cult leader takes you to Jonestown and tries to get you to drink the Kool-Aid,' Jones said. Jennings appeared taken aback by the comparison to Jim Jones' cult, whose victims included hundreds of children and followers who were coerced into consuming cyanide-laced poison.

'This is Jonestown for the Republican Party,' Van Jones said and went further, accusing Republicans of paying the price for failing to challenge Trump. 'They drank the Kool-Aid, and they have candidates that are dropping like flies across the country because they did not stand up to this guy when he was doing things that were wrong, when he was violating the law, when he was running over our system; they didn't stand up to him. They're paying their price.'

Jennings appeared uncomfortable as Jones continued his attack on Republican loyalty to Trump. Cooper eventually invited the conservative commentator to respond, joking about checking the contents of his glass following Jones' repeated references to the poisoned drink. 'Do you realise I'm sitting right here? I can hear everything you're saying,' Jennings replied.

Even Scott Jennings Acknowledges GOP Defeat

Despite the partisan sparring, Jennings acknowledged the scale of the Republican setbacks. 'I'm not gonna sugarcoat it,' he said, describing the results as 'a country a** whooping.'

Rather than focus on Jones' celebrations, Jennings pointed to economic pressures facing American households. 'The most immediate issue is cost of living and gas prices. And that is the bottom line,' he said.

Jennings blamed voter frustration over living costs and petrol prices, as the war with Iran added to economic pressures. 'You can read into a lot of other things. You could be jubilant about this, that, or the other, but at the end of the day, the American people have here and now concerns, and that's really the lesson you've got to take away from this,' he said.