CNN Pundit Ashley Allison Is Stunned as Admirer Messages Her Live On Air

Martin Holmes June 30, 2026, 10:21 am

What To Know

During a live broadcast of CNN NewsNight, a viewer asked for panelist Ashley Allison’s phone number.
Allison, a former Obama-Biden and Biden-Harris senior staffer, is a regular CNN political commentator.
She recently made headlines for a heated on-air exchange with conservative commentator Scott Jennings.

Democratic political strategist Ashley Allison found out she had a secret admirer while live on air on Monday’s (June 29) edition of CNN NewsNight With Abby Phillip.

In the closing moments of the show, Phillip was reading viewer comments, including one which she described as a “two-parter.” In the first part, the commenter wrote, “Trump may be a blessing in disguise. He’s shown us every weakness in our laws that must be fixed after he’s gone.”

The viewer used the second part of their message to shoot their shot, writing, “Also, I would love to get Ashley’s digits.”

“Period!” a fellow co-panelist could be heard saying off-camera.

Allison’s jaw dropped before she started laughing. “Okay,” she said. “Thank you.”

After reading some more viewer comments, Phillip turned back to Allison, saying, “So, Ashley, a viewer shooting his shot for you tonight…”

“My DMs are open,” Allison quipped. “I’m joking, I’m joking, I’m joking!!

“All right!” Phillips said as she wrapped up the show.

Allison previously worked as a senior staffer for the Obama-Biden Administration and the Biden-Harris campaign. She also served as the Executive Vice President for the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights from 2017 to 2021.

CNN's Abby Phillip Laughs at Scott Jennings as He Defends Trump Kennedy Center

The former high school special education teacher regularly appears on CNN as a political commentator. Last month, she made headlines after a tense on-air clash with the network’s resident conservative voice, Scott Jennings. On an episode of State of the Union, the pair got into it over GOP gerrymandering and the Supreme Court gutting the Voting Rights Act, the landmark statute that prohibits racial discrimination in voting.

“You all are cheating, just accept it,” Allison told Jennings after he boasted about the redrawing of congressional district maps. “You’re cheating because you, politically, are not favorable right now, so this is the only way you would actually win the House, by drawing maps. These maps are hurting one group of voters, and that is Black voters.”

You can watch a clip of the CNN viewer shooting his shot here.

CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip, Weeknights, 11/10 c, CNN