Cameron Kasky, a CNN commentator and political candidate, is under fire after he inaccurately claimed during a panel discussion that President Donald Trump was involved in a “sex-trafficking network.”
Kasky, known as a Parkland shooting survivor and gun control advocate, made headlines in the wake of the tragic event, joining fellow activists like David Hogg to champion stricter gun laws.
Notably, Kasky once confronted then-Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) at a town hall, stating it was impossible to look at him without seeing Rubio “shooting my classmates.”
After attending Columbia University for a brief period, Kasky has focused on activism and media, identifying as a democratic socialist and openly queer.
Recently, he entered the Democratic primary race to succeed Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) in New York’s 10th Congressional District.
During a CNN NewsNight panel discussion, Kasky had a heated exchange with conservative commentator Scott Jennings, insisting, “you don’t get to say the word ‘illegals’ anymore” when discussing illegal immigration.
Jennings quickly countered, “Who are you to tell me what I can and can’t say? I can say whatever I want. They’re illegal aliens, and that’s what the law calls them.”
In a troubling moment of the conversation, Kasky alleged that Trump is part of a “sex-trafficking ring,” suggesting a connection to notorious sex-trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, an assertion that has been widely discredited. There is no evidence linking Trump to Epstein’s activities; in fact, Trump banned Epstein from his Mar-A-Lago resort before any accusations surfaced.
In response to the backlash, Kasky quickly took to X to retract his statement, saying, “I would like to retract my comments from CNN last night and truly apologize. Donald Trump was obviously not involved with a giant international child sex trafficking ring where women and children were systematically raped by elites. I said that by accident and didn’t mean it.”
Kasky is currently campaigning in a competitive Democratic primary for the 2026 midterm elections. The 10th Congressional District leans heavily Democratic, making the primary winner a strong contender for the general election.
Other significant candidates in the race include Assembly Member Micah Lasher, who is expected to be endorsed by Nadler, Assembly Member Alex Bores, and Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of former President John F. Kennedy. Additional contenders include civil rights lawyer Laura Dunn, journalist Jami Floyd, and MSNBC analyst George Conway.
