CNN’s Scott Jennings Ribs Vivek Ramaswamy for Culture Clash Comments: ‘Locker Stuffer, Much?’

In a comedic twist on CNN’s NewsNight, political pundit Scott Jennings couldn’t help but throw a few jabs at former presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy for his recent hot take on why tech companies are hiring foreign workers over Americans. Apparently, Ramaswamy decided to blame it all on… wait for it… American culture. On Thursday, Ramaswamy took to X (the new Twitter, for those of you living under a rock) to share his wisdom. He argued that since the ’90s, America has been all about celebrating mediocrity over excellence. He quipped, “A culture that celebrates the prom queen over the math olympiad champ, or the jock over the valedictorian, will not produce the best engineers.” His buddy, Elon Musk, co-chair of the hilariously named Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), chimed in, supporting Ramaswamy’s cultural critique by pointing out a “permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent.” When host Abby Philip asked Jennings for his two cents, he didn’t miss a beat. “Somebody got stuffed in a locker. I’m not going to say who,” Jennings quipped, sending the panel into a fit of giggles. He then proceeded to roast Ramaswamy’s Iowa primary performance, suggesting his comments might explain his less-than-stellar results. Jennings went on to dissect the fallout from Ramaswamy and Musk’s comments, noting the backlash from MAGA loyalists who aren’t exactly thrilled about the pro-immigration vibe. “Elon later clarified he just wants to import the top 0.1% of engineering talent, like getting a Jokic or a Wemby’s for your NBA team,” Jennings explained, drawing a sports analogy for the tech world. “But what Vivek did was overtalk it. A lot of MAGA people are not happy. A lot of Republicans are not happy. And this is why Donald Trump is in the oval office,” Jennings concluded, implying that perhaps Ramaswamy’s cultural critique was not the slam dunk he thought it would be. In the end, it seems Ramaswamy’s attempt at cultural commentary was less “cultural revolution” and more “comedy central.”