'Startling': GOP insider feigns shock DNC is waving American flags and not burning them

Longtime Republican strategist and Mitch McConnell adviser Scott Jennings joked during CNN's coverage of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago that he couldn't believe how many American flags he saw Democratic delegates waving.

For decades, in popular culture, waving the American flag has been depicted as a conservative-coded activity; however, at this DNC, Democrats sought to reclaim patriotism and its associated symbols for their own, expressing their love of country and freedom at every opportunity — and it was not lost on Jennings.

it is pretty loud in here right now. it may be the loudest we have seen it during the convention. i think there's more people here. the american flags were startling me. normally you guys are are burning these things but tonight they are waving them. just kidding.

In all seriousness, Jennings argued, he is impressed by what he knows so far of Vice President Kamala Harris' upcoming acceptance speech — and thinks she is doing what she needs to do to hold former President Donald Trump's feet to the fire.

What happens next, he said, all comes down to how Trump responds.

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"To me, the speech tonight by Harris is the true beginning of the campaign for her," said Jennings. "This pre-period has been weird because of the way she got into the race, but now, it is on. The words and excerpts we have seen that she's going to stress are realistic, practical, and common sense. And so from this day forward that is the race, right? If she can get in that zone, she's definitely viable. If Trump turns it into something radical, liberal, and dangerous, then she's going to be something less than that, and it will be hard to win."

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