On Tuesday night, Donald Trump pulled off the unthinkable.
He defeated Hillary Clinton to become the 45th President of the United States.
In the immediate aftermath of this stunning victory – and over the subsequent days, weeks, months and even years – analysts and pundits tried to decipher the reasons behind Trump’s win.
Was Hillary too polarizing of a candidate?
Did FBI Director James Comey alter the race when he brought back up his organization’s investigation into Clinton’s email scandal just 11 days before election day?
Did Trump simply connect more with struggling working class caucasians?
Was this a rebuke of the gridlock and corruption that has plagued Washington for decades?
Sure, all of those factors likely contributed to Trump’s electoral college surge.
But Jones was the only reporter on any major network to mention another factor: race.
“People have talked about a miracle. I’m hearing about a nightmare,” Jones said on CNN, choking up at various points.
“You tell your kids: Don’t be a bully… don’t be a bigot.. do your homework and be prepared. And then you have this outcome.
“You have people putting children to bed tonight, and they’re afraid of breakfast. They’re afraid of ‘How do I explain this to my children?’ I have Muslim friends who are texting me tonight, ‘Should I leave the country?’
“I have families of immigrants that are terrified tonight.”
Jones proceeded to bring up the issue of race and how an openly bigoted candidate just got elected to the highest office in the world.
“This was a rebellion against the elites, true, it was a create reinvention of politics… but it was also something else,” he said.
“We haven’t talked about race. This was a ‘white-lash’ against a changing country … against a black president in part. And that’s the part where the pain comes.
“Donald Trump has a responsibility tonight to come and reassure people that he is going to be the president of all the people who he insulted and offended and brushed aside.”
Trump did sort of do that in his acceptance speech, which you can watch here:
“Now it is time for America to bind the wounds of division, have to get together,” Trump said upon celebrating his win, adding:
“To all Republicans and Democrats and independents across this nation, I say it is time for us to come together as one united people.
“It is time. I pledge to every citizen of our land that I will be President for all of Americans, and this is so important to me.”
This is a very different note than the one Trump sounded while he campaigned on messages of divisiveness across the country, but all we can do it wait to see if it sticks.
For the most part, Jones received praise on social media for his frank remarks. To wit:
“Van Jones just schooled everyone and explained exactly what a Trump win means,” one person wrote.
“Van jones is the man,” another added.
“Van Jones. Yes,” said The Vampire Diaries creator Julie Plec.
As you can see below, not many celebrities were in a mood to praise anyone after Trump’s victory.
Here’s a rundown of how they reacted on Wednesday night and Thursday morning:
