(Ben Sellers, Headline USA) Things got heated during a recent CNN panel debate about New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s edict to set thermostats at 78 degrees Fahrenheit amid a record-shattering heat wave.
But not literally.
As panelist Ben Ferguson pointed out, the studio where the discussion took place was anything but toasty.
“By the way, just to be clear, it’s not 78 degrees in here right now! No one’s gonna buy this. It’s absurd,” he said.
Host and moderator Abby Phillip, known to many as the bane of Scott Jennings’s existence, interjected to tell Ferguson how peculiar it was for him to object to enduring sweltering indoor temperatures at the behest of the socialist city leader.
“This is a weird hill to die on. … you can let this one go,” Phillip beseeched.
But Ferguson pressed on, urging Phillip to practice what she preached.
“Or we can turn it up to 78 right now in solidarity: We stand with Mamdani,” he said.
Phillip again tried to shame her guest by suggesting that his opposition to the AC ban was politically motivated.
“You don’t have to jump off the partisan cliff,” she said.
CNN’s studio wasn’t the only New York City location exposed for its hypocrisy.
Reporters with infrared thermometers tested 20 spots at City Hall, revealing that the temperatures there were set as low as 54 degrees, the New York Post reported.
All but five of the spots were below 78 degrees.
“Maybe the mayor shouldn’t tell New Yorkers to sacrifice their comfort if he isn’t willing to do the same,” said City Council minority leader David Carr.
Ben Sellers is a freelance writer and former editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/realbensellers.
