CNN's Abby Phillip Rebukes MAGA Panelist for Laughing at Nazi Imagery During Jan. 6 Discussion

09:24 PM, 12/05/2025

Abby Phillip rebuked conservative panelist Isabel Brown after Brown appeared to laugh as contributors described Jan. 6 rioters wearing Nazi symbols and slogans. Dan Koh criticized FBI Director Kash Patel while referencing proposed $545 million FBI cuts and images of rioters in shirts reading "Camp Auschwitz" and "6MWE." The program also referenced an unverified claim that former President Trump pardoned roughly 1,500 rioters. Brown later posted subdued Instagram stories before and after the segment.

CNN Anchor Calls Out Panelist After She Laughs While Panel Describes Nazi Imagery At Jan. 6

On a recent edition of NewsNight, CNN anchor Abby Phillip publicly admonished conservative author and commentator Isabel Brown after she appeared to chuckle while panelists described January 6 rioters wearing Nazi symbols and slogans.

Contributors were debating FBI Director Kash Patel and his self-described "victory lap" following the arrest of a suspect tied to pipe bombs planted in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021. Former Biden official Dan Koh criticized Patel, saying he "takes credit for it while he also proposes cutting $545 million from the FBI, 2,000 personnel jobs," and argued that pardoning or defending those tied to overtly hateful imagery was objectionable.

As Koh described rioters wearing shirts with slogans such as "Six million wasn't enough," "Camp Auschwitz" and swastikas, Brown made a facial expression and laughed quietly. Koh asked, "Is that funny to you?" and Phillip interjected: "Isabel, I'm surprised you're chuckling about that, because that's actually true. Those people were among the people that were there on January 6."

Brown defended herself on air, saying she condemned the shirts as "vile and evil" but added she was concerned about attempts to "paint half the country as a fascist." Koh replied, "They wore the swastikas," and Phillip emphasized the scope of the conversation: "Absolutely no one was talking about half the country. We're just talking about the ones who stormed the Capitol on January 6."

The segment referenced disturbing images from the Capitol attack, including a "Camp Auschwitz" T-shirt printed with a skull and crossbones and the phrase "work means freedom" (a translation of the Auschwitz motto "Arbeit macht frei") and another shirt bearing "6MWE," shorthand for "6 Million Wasn't Enough."

The broadcast also mentioned a claim that former President Donald Trump had pardoned roughly 1,500 Capitol rioters; that specific figure and timing were presented in the segment but have not been independently verified in this article.

After the program, Brown — a commentator, author and Turning Point USA spokesperson — posted to her Instagram story both before and after the segment. Her initial post previewed the appearance; the follow-up was a muted selfie captioned, "Well that was... an experience."

Takeaway: The exchange underscored the tension between condemning extremist imagery tied to the January 6 attack and concerns from some guests about generalizing those actions to a broader political movement.