&#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; host Joe Scarborough laid into Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) on Monday, criticizing her defense of a video in which she and several others in her party had actively encouraged service members to refuse &#8220;unlawful&#8221; orders from President Donald Trump.
Scarborough&#8217;s issue was not the fact that Slotkin, a former CIA analyst — and several others who had served in the military — had made the video insinuating that Trump either had already or would soon issue unlawful orders and telling military service members that they had a responsibility to refuse them. He did not take issue with the fact that she was defending the video, but rather, he was upset that she&#8217;d been unable to answer a specific question about it to his satisfaction during a recent interview.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Joe Scarborough is very mad at Senator Slotkin for saying Trump hasn’t issued any illegal orders.
&#8220;Wrong answer!&#8221;
Joe then goes on to cite a hypothetical scenario of what Trump might do as evidence of illegal orders. <a href="https://t.co/viCkHoAxMJ">https://t.co/viCkHoAxMJ</a> <a href="https://t.co/NNyUdgizPw">pic.twitter.com/NNyUdgizPw</a>
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) <a href="https://twitter.com/WesternLensman/status/1992961566908481712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 24, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Scarborough was responding to Slotkin&#8217;s answer to host Martha Raddatz — on ABC&#8217;s &#8220;This Week&#8221; —  when she admitted that she didn&#8217;t actually know of any illegal orders that President Trump had given.
&#8220;I’m sorry, with all due respect, wrong answer. President of the United States, the commander-in-chief does have wide latitude, just does. And the Senate can take that up. But he has wide latitude on strikes. Ask Barack Obama on drone strikes. Ask George W. Bush on drone strikes,&#8221; Scarborough said, referencing the Trump administration&#8217;s actions against narco-terrorists.
Right now, DailyWire+ annual memberships are fifty percent off during our Black Friday sale. Join now at <a href="http://dailywire.com/blackfriday" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dailywire.com/blackfriday</a>.
&#8220;But where we know the president has said, I am going to give illegal orders to people in the military, is when he was on Air Force One coming back, I forget where he was coming back from, but he said, ‘I can send the Marines. I can send the Army. I can send the Air Force. I can send the Coast Guard into any city I want to control crime. And the courts can’t do anything about it.’ That’s illegal. It’s just illegal,&#8221; Scarborough continued, insisting that Trump had said he&#8217;d give illegal orders despite the fact that thus far, he had not done so.
&#8220;And so Democrats kind of need to – if the president has already said, I’m going to commit this illegal act, then I’m kind of surprised they don’t have the answer when they go on a Sunday show for that,&#8221; he complained.

MSNBC TV Hosts Joe Scarborough And Mika Brzezinski Interviewed By Philanthropist And Financier David Rubenstein In DC

Joe Scarborough Furious Dem Can’t Defend Insurrection Video

Joe Scarborough

Media

Morning Joe

MSNBC

Politics

Virginia Democrat Jay Jones, under fire for three-year-old texts in which he advocated the assassination of a political opponent, found no support on Monday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”
Host Mika Brzezinski brought up the topic, noting that the messages were so disturbing she hesitated to read them on air. Co-hosts Jonathan Lemire and John Heilemann appeared to share her sentiment, expressing similar discomfort with the content.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The DNC hacks over at Morning Joe are now calling for Jay Jones to get out of the race.
The propaganda press is suddenly turning on Jones after being mum all weekend. <a href="https://t.co/3i4obiuWZG">https://t.co/3i4obiuWZG</a> <a href="https://t.co/ZBVGAC2SIQ">pic.twitter.com/ZBVGAC2SIQ</a>
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) <a href="https://twitter.com/WesternLensman/status/1975201593038619061?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 6, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“[The] text messages, horrible, I didn’t even want to read them out loud,” Brzezinski began. “How did the — I’m wondering how the text messages came to light?”
<a class="c-link c-link--focus-visible" href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_campaign=fall40&amp;utm_content=fallsale&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_campaign=fall40&amp;utm_content=fallsale&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial" data-sk="tooltip_parent">Get 40% off new DailyWire+ annual memberships with code FALL40 at checkout!</a> 
“Deep — deeply disturbing messages,” Lemire agreed, immediately and repeatedly insisting that condemnation of Jones’ texts had come from both sides of the aisle. “Messages that have been swiftly condemned across the political aisle. The Republicans have tried to tie this to the — Congresswoman Spanberger, the gubernatorial candidate, she did very quickly denounce them.”
Spanberger did issue a statement voicing her “disgust” over the messages, but she — and many other Democrats stopped short of calling on him to drop out of the race:
<blockquote>&#8220;After learning of these comments earlier today, I spoke frankly with Jay about my disgust with what he had said and texted. I made clear to Jay that he must fully take responsibility for his words. What I have also made clear is that as a candidate — and the next Governor of our Commonwealth, I will always condemn violent language in our politics.&#8221;</blockquote>
“But it&#8217;s unclear whether this attorney general candidate will stay in the race,” Lemire concluded. “I think there&#8217;s a growing sense that he probably should not. We heard from President Trump last night, but even some Democrat leaders, John Heilemann, have started to say, look, this is inappropriate, you can&#8217;t — and especially at a time right now with such concern about violent rhetoric and political violence — that this is just way beyond the line.”
“Who says that?” Brzezinski interjected.
Heilemann agreed with Lemire’s take, adding, “I would say, not to be too much on the high horse, it’s wildly inappropriate under any circumstances — today, tomorrow, ten years ago, six months ago — I think the pressure is going to be on Spanberger to — and for the whole of the party to ask this candidate to just quit the race because just — both because it&#8217;s the right thing and also the political splash back.”

US-NEWS-VA-AG-JONES-VP

‘I Didn’t Want To Read Them Out Loud’: Even ‘Morning Joe’ Isn’t Standing Up For Vile Jay Jones Texts

'I Didn't Want To Read Them Out Loud': Even 'Morning Joe' Isn't Standing Up For Vile Jay Jones Texts

Democrats

Jay Jones

Mika Brzezinski

Virginia

MSNBC host Joe Scarborough waded into the ongoing spat that began with Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA) and Fox News anchor Dana Perino over the governor&#8217;s recent attempts to mimic and mock President Donald Trump&#8217;s social media posts via X.
Scarborough echoed Perino&#8217;s sentiments during Wednesday&#8217;s broadcast, referring to Newsom&#8217;s efforts as &#8220;embarrassing.&#8221; The California governor had made a series of posts on X attacking Trump and other Republicans in all capital letters, including calling them made-up nicknames.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Hahahaha the Democrats are so cringe that even Morning Joe admits they are embarrassing themselves 😂
“You can see the Democrats are trying to find their footing and it’s quite embarrassing, actually.
I mean, Gavin Newsom. Have you seen what he’s doing online? And it’s like,… <a href="https://t.co/Vu746UNY8y">pic.twitter.com/Vu746UNY8y</a>
— TheStormHasArrived (@TheStormRedux) <a href="https://twitter.com/TheStormRedux/status/1958118160713801878?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;You can see the Democrats are trying to find their footing, and it’s quite embarrassing, actually. I mean, Gavin Newsom. I mean, have you seen what he’s doing online? And it’s like, ugh, just take a deep breath. Don&#8217;t try to turn the ship 180 degrees in one — they don’t know what to do,&#8221; Scarborough observed.
&#8220;I have a good idea. Instead of trying to school Donald Trump, talk into the camera about affordability,&#8221; he suggested. &#8220;Talk about making groceries more affordable. Talk about what you&#8217;re going to do for housing. Talk about what you&#8217;re going to do for energy prices that continue to go up.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/dana-perino-warns-gavin-newsom-to-avoid-cringey-x-presence-and-he-doubles-down-instead" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Perino responded</a> to the posts — made primarily by the Governor Newsom Press Office account on X — during a broadcast of &#8220;The Five&#8221; on Fox News, and she made almost the same point that Scarborough did.
&#8220;For the last week, Gavin Newsom — why am I giving him advice?&#8221; she said. &#8220;You have to stop it with the Twitter thing. I don’t know where his wife is. If I were his wife, I would say you are making a fool of yourself, stop it.&#8221;
The Press Office account doubled down in a response to Perino: &#8220;DANA &#8216;DING DONG&#8217; PERINO (NEVER HEARD OF HER UNTIL TODAY!) IS MELTING DOWN BECAUSE OF ME, GAVIN C. NEWSOM! FOX HATES THAT I AM AMERICA’S MOST FAVORITE GOVERNOR (&#8216;RATINGS KING&#8217;) SAVING AMERICA — WHILE TRUMP CAN’T EVEN CONQUER THE &#8216;BIG&#8217; STAIRS ON AIR FORCE ONE ANYMORE!!! TRUMP HAS &#8216;LOST HIS STEP&#8217; AND FOX IS LOSING IT BECAUSE WHEN I TYPE, AMERICA NOW WINS!!! THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER. — GCN&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
DANA &#8220;DING DONG&#8221; PERINO (NEVER HEARD OF HER UNTIL TODAY!) IS MELTING DOWN BECAUSE OF ME, GAVIN C. NEWSOM! FOX HATES THAT I AM AMERICA’S MOST FAVORITE GOVERNOR (&#8220;RATINGS KING&#8221;) SAVING AMERICA — WHILE TRUMP CAN’T EVEN CONQUER THE “BIG” STAIRS ON AIR FORCE ONE ANYMORE!!! TRUMP HAS…
— Governor Newsom Press Office (@GovPressOffice) <a href="https://twitter.com/GovPressOffice/status/1957829287115157928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 19, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

‘Morning Joe’ Host Sides With Dana Perino In Weird Gavin Newsom Spat

When You've Lost 'Morning Joe' ... : Scarborough Sides With Dana Perino In Weird Gavin Newsom Spat

Dana Perino

Donald Trump

Gavin Newsom

&#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; host Mika Brzezinski appeared to realize too late that in their zeal to oppose President Donald Trump at any cost, Democrats were charging headlong into the &#8220;trap&#8221; of defending the violent crime that Trump had promised to stop in Washington, D.C.
Brzezinski and former &#8220;Hardball&#8221; host Chris Matthews were discussing President Trump&#8217;s takeover of law enforcement in the capital city, and the oppositional stance taken by many prominent Democrats and media talking heads — and they came to the conclusion that what the American people would see was Democrats siding with criminals in their efforts to get Trump.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
💡The moment when MSNBC’s Chris Matthews and Mika Brzezinski finally realize Democrats have been duped by Trump into defending violent crime in DC:
“It’s a trap!&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/J3AlvIKGHA">pic.twitter.com/J3AlvIKGHA</a>
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) <a href="https://twitter.com/WesternLensman/status/1955641913815810167?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 13, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
For Matthews, the sticking point was the murder rate. &#8220;The murder rate — you can&#8217;t keep saying violent crime is down, but the murder rate&#8217;s up,&#8221; he said. &#8220;To the average person, the murder [rate] is about life and death. You don&#8217;t brag about a rising murder rate.&#8221;
&#8220;And the Democrats — I agree with you, Mika — have fallen into the trap of defending what&#8217;s indefensible,&#8221; he added.
&#8220;It&#8217;s a trap! Yes, it&#8217;s a trap,&#8221; Brzezinski replied. &#8220;I mean, it — it&#8217;s not a winner politically to say, &#8216;You&#8217;re wrong, look at the data.&#8217; Because if one violent crime happens in a very heavy populated part of the city, people hear about it and it&#8217;s visceral.&#8221;
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_campaign=summer&amp;utm_content=editorialsummersale&amp;utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">End of Summer Sale – Get 40% off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
&#8220;They don&#8217;t want it, and they want to — they&#8217;ll gravitate to the person who appears to be doing something about it,&#8221; she concluded.
Meghan McCain was among those who had already noticed a number of Democrats going in that direction, and she commented on the trend: &#8220;Since 2020 — I will NEVER understand democrats messaging of &#8216;murder and crime is actually not a big deal.&#8217; And why they continue to double, triple, quadruple down on it.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Since 2020 &#8211; I will NEVER understand democrats messaging of &#8220;murder and crime is actually not a big deal&#8221;.
And why they continue to double, triple, quadruple down on it.
— Meghan McCain (@MeghanMcCain) <a href="https://twitter.com/MeghanMcCain/status/1955267299184677034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
A number, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), have <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-promises-to-clean-up-d-c-and-democrats-are-mad">insisted</a> that the crime rate in the nation&#8217;s capital is at a 30-year low — but reports have also circulated suggesting that those numbers come from a D.C. Metro Police report that may have downplayed violent crimes in order to make the city appear safer on paper.

‘It’s A Trap!’: MSNBC Host Realizes Too Late That Dems Are Defending Violent Crime To Get Trump

Chris Matthews

&#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; host Joe Scarborough admitted that at least one of his &#8220;very liberal&#8221; friends had voiced support for President Donald Trump&#8217;s move to federalize law enforcement in Washington, D.C., saying during Tuesday morning&#8217;s broadcast that his friend was deeply concerned about the rampant crime in the city.
Scarborough read a text sent to him by the friend — whose name he did not reveal — less than 24 hours after <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-promises-to-clean-up-d-c-and-democrats-are-mad">Trump announced</a> that he was invoking Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act and declaring a public emergency — a move that allowed him to bring the D.C. Police Department under the control of the Justice Department and DEA Administrator Terry Cole.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Joe Scarborough reads a text from a &#8220;very liberal&#8221; friend who lives in D.C.:
&#8220;I&#8217;m not totally opposed to Trump&#8217;s National Guard move in D.C&#8230; crime remains rampant. I&#8217;ve had too many friends carjacked, shot at. None of us will walk more than 3 blocks after 8 P.M.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/LSPLCJj671">pic.twitter.com/LSPLCJj671</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1955295517941883329?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;I want to read you a text from a — someone who — I won&#8217;t say their name, but they&#8217;re — we&#8217;ll just say that they&#8217;re very liberal,&#8221; Scarborough began. &#8220;And he says, &#8216;This may sound controversial, but I&#8217;m not totally opposed to Trump&#8217;s National Guard move in D.C. I know he&#8217;s doing it for politics, but crime remains rampant. I&#8217;ve had too many friends carjacked, shot at. None of us will walk more than 3 blocks after 8 p.m. Thirteen-year-olds are committing many of these crimes, quite a change from a decade ago when things were much calmer.'&#8221;
Scarborough, a former Republican Rep. from Florida, went on to contrast his own experience living in Washington, D.C., before the city cracked down on crime.
&#8220;Well, that actually sounds like the D.C. that I lived in when I lived a block behind the Supreme Court,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And, you know, every three days, somebody — one of my neighbors was getting held up at gunpoint. I mean, there has been a crime problem in D.C.&#8221;
Democrats writ large have voiced their opposition to Trump&#8217;s move, claiming that violent crime in the District is at a 30-year low — but as many have pointed out, the data may have been manipulated to downplay the crime rates.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
In July 2025, DC police commander suspended for downgrading shootings, stabbings &amp; carjackings to lesser offenses to make crime stats look better.
They’re not fixing crime, they’re cooking the books. <a href="https://t.co/HRc3OQktnS">pic.twitter.com/HRc3OQktnS</a>
— Kylie Jane Kremer (@KylieJaneKremer) <a href="https://twitter.com/KylieJaneKremer/status/1954937308286943547?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 11, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

‘Morning Joe’ Host Says ‘Very Liberal’ Friend Secretly Supports Trump’s D.C. Crackdown

'Morning Joe' Host Says 'Very Liberal' Friend Secretly Supports Trump's D.C. Crackdown

Police

Washington D.C.

Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) acknowledged on Wednesday that one aspect of the tariff wars had truly surprised him: how many countries the Trump administration said had come to the negotiating table, and how quickly they had done so.
Kennedy made the observation when he joined hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski on MSNBC&#8217;s &#8220;Morning Joe,&#8221; admitting that he &#8220;frankly never saw that coming.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
JOE SCARBOROUGH: Some of the smartest minds across the world are betting on a recession.
SEN KENNEDY: With tariffs, an eye for an eye just leaves both people blind&#8230;But then&#8230;an extraordinary thing happened! We have 195 countries in the world. Probably 40% have come forward —… <a href="https://t.co/30WYxnYuQ1">pic.twitter.com/30WYxnYuQ1</a>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1909960194546692390?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 9, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Scarborough set the oppositional narrative with regard to tariffs, saying, &#8220;Some of the smartest minds across the world are betting on a recession. What are you saying to your business leaders when they&#8217;re calling you about where this goes next?&#8221;
&#8220;Well, this is what I&#8217;m telling them,&#8221; Kennedy replied. &#8220;With tariffs, an eye for an eye just leaves both people blind. When a government imposes a tariff, it&#8217;s putting its thumb on the scale. It interferes with people&#8217;s freedom to exchange goods and services.&#8221;
&#8220;Some countries — China, the best example — have used trade barriers as a weapon to hurt the American economy,&#8221; Kennedy continued. &#8220;You said it — God created the world, everything else is made in China. President Trump decided to try to change this, and he, as we know, has imposed dramatically higher American tariffs on these countries.&#8221;
And that, Kennedy explained, was where the pendulum started to swing back: &#8220;But then, at least for me, an extraordinary thing happened. We have 195 countries in the world. Probably 40% have come forward — and instead of bowing up and fighting, they&#8217;ve said, &#8216;We want to lower our tariffs! Will you lower yours?'&#8221;
&#8220;I frankly never saw that coming,&#8221; Kennedy said, noting that he could not speak for what the president might do next, but adding, &#8220;I think it is a wonderful opportunity &#8230; I would pounce on this opportunity like a ninja. And I would use this as an opportunity to reduce or in some cases — Taiwan, Vietnam, European Union — go to zero reciprocal tariffs and then we can have free trade, let the best product at the best price win.&#8221;
Kennedy once again couched his comments by saying he did not know the White House&#8217;s plan and could only speak to what he would do in the current situation.

Sen. Cotton Holds Capitol Hill Press Conference To Discuss Ongoing College Campus Protests

GOP Sen. Reveals What Surprised Him About Tariff Battle: ‘I Frankly Never Saw That Coming’

GOP Sen. Reveals What Surprised Him About Tariff Battle: 'I Frankly Never Saw That Coming'

Congress

Economics

John Kennedy

Tariffs

Trade War

Actor George Clooney was reportedly livid after &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; host Mika Brzezinski suggested on live television that former President Barack Obama was pulling the &#8220;Ocean&#8217;s Eleven&#8221; star&#8217;s strings.
Biden biographer Chris Whipple revealed details of the heated conversation — between Clooney and an unnamed MSNBC producer — in his upcoming book about the 2024 presidential campaign, &#8220;Unchartered: How Trump Beat Biden, Harris, and the Odds in the Wildest Campaign in History.&#8221;
The exchange began with <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/george-clooney-joins-chorus-of-stars-telling-biden-its-time-to-drop-out-of-race" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Clooney&#8217;s shock op-ed</a> after he attended a Hollywood fundraiser for former President Joe Biden, who was still running for re-election at the time. Clooney led with the fact that he considered Biden a friend — but then made it clear he believed it was time for him to step aside and bow out of the race.
&#8220;The one battle he cannot win is the fight against time. None of us can,” Clooney wrote at the time. “It’s devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fund-raiser was not the Joe ‘big F-ing deal‘ Biden of 2010. He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/morning-joe-biden-team-says-obama-pushed-george-clooney-to-turn-on-him" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brzezinski</a> was on the air the next morning and argued that it &#8220;wasn&#8217;t George Clooney&#8221; behind the op-ed.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Mika Brzezinski says &quot;there&#39;s a lot there&quot; to theory that Obama is behind Clooney op-ed.
READ: <a href="https://t.co/49gtAiKvjv">https://t.co/49gtAiKvjv</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MikaBrzezinski?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MikaBrzezinski</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Obama?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Obama</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/georgeclooney?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#georgeclooney</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/JoeBiden?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#JoeBiden</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Democrats?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Democrats</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Election2024?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Election2024</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/explorepage?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#explorepage</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/trending?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#trending</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/viral?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#viral</a> <a href="https://t.co/6XDdRhhAsz">pic.twitter.com/6XDdRhhAsz</a>
&mdash; Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) <a href="https://twitter.com/dcexaminer/status/1811411372854653219?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 11, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;This wasn’t George Clooney,&#8221; Brzezinski declared. &#8220;It just wasn&#8217;t &#8230; I think that Barack Obama has a lot of influence, and I think that there’s, there’s a lot there.&#8221;
Clooney, according to Whipple&#8217;s upcoming tome, was incensed. He reportedly called one of the &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; producers and gave him an earful, asking, &#8220;How the f*** could you let her link me with Barack Obama saying he made me write the op-ed?&#8221;
&#8220;You f***ed me… You’re my friend. You should have stood up for me,&#8221; Clooney continued, even as the producer pointed out he had nothing to do with Brzezinski&#8217;s comments, according to Whipple.
&#8220;George, this is not a f***ing movie,&#8221; the producer reportedly said. &#8220;There’s no script. It’s just not a movie where you go script page to script page.&#8221;

George Clooney

George Clooney Unloads On Producer After ‘Morning Joe’ Host Claimed Obama Pulled His Strings: Report

George Clooney Unloads On MSNBC Producer After 'Morning Joe' Host Claims Obama Pulled His Strings

2024 Elections

Barack Obama

Celebrities

Hollywood

Joe Biden

&#8220;The View&#8221; cohost <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/joy-behar" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Joy Behar</a> claimed that she could never have a beer with former President George W. Bush because she worried that she might actually like him — and she argued that might prevent her from being able to be as critical of him as she should.
Behar raised the issue as she and her cohosts on ABC&#8217;s &#8220;The View&#8221; discussed the post-election meeting between President-elect Donald Trump and the hosts of MSNBC&#8217;s &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; — and Scarborough&#8217;s vociferous defense of that meeting.
While Behar admitted that dialogue was important, she complained that in Trump&#8217;s case, being willing to sit down and talk with him could have the effect of &#8220;normalizing&#8221; him.
&#8220;I think the problem that people are having with it is that there’s a certain feeling that they’re normalizing him, and he’s not normal. He’s not. He’s a very unusual case. He’s a TV talk show host, whatever it was that show he did,&#8221; she said.
Behar then pivoted to bring up her point about Bush, saying, &#8220;By the way, I have a personal thing about this because when George W. Bush was in the White House, I knew that if I had a beer with the guy, I would like him. I knew it. And so I didn’t want to have a beer with him. I had things to say about George W. Bush that were critical of him. If I had sat down with the guy, I would feel maybe I can’t anymore. That’s my problem with &#8216;Morning Joe.'&#8221;
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/gift-guide/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CHECK OUT THE DAILY WIRE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE</a>
Behar&#8217;s concerns aside, a beer with Bush would have been highly unlikely solely because the former president, after coming to the realization that he was drinking too much, had quit drinking entirely in 1986.
And for his part, Scarborough once again defended his trip to Mar-a-Lago during Thursday morning&#8217;s broadcast.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Joe Scarborough screams at his ungrateful audience (all four of them) for not appreciating his willingness to talk to Herr Trump. <a href="https://t.co/UcIr111StM">pic.twitter.com/UcIr111StM</a>
&mdash; Bluesky Libs (@BlueskyLibs) <a href="https://twitter.com/BlueskyLibs/status/1864689409309708656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 5, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;I always have Republicans say, ‘Oh, they’re telling you exactly what to say.’ No! Nobody’s once told me what to say here,&#8221; Scarborough said. &#8220;Well actually, one person did one time. One leader did one time. I said, ‘I’ll tell you what, if you think you can do such a damn good job, why don’t you come here and do the show four hours a day? I’m fine quitting. But I’m gonna do my show. I’ll do my show the way I want to do my show!'&#8221;

ABC’s “The View” – Season 25

Joy Behar Explains Why She Couldn’t Have A Beer With George W. Bush

Joy Behar Explains Why She Couldn't Have A Beer With George W. Bush

George W. Bush

Joy Behar

U.S.

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/msnbc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MSNBC</a> guest — and staff writer at The Atlantic — David Frum stepped far enough over the line on Wednesday that even the hosts of &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; balked, condemning his comments as &#8220;too flippant&#8221; for the current climate.
Frum compared Hegseth to a nominee put forward years ago by the late President George H.W. Bush, arguing that Hegseth had all of the same weaknesses, but none of the strengths. Hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski did not interrupt Frum while he was speaking, but paused after his segment ended to address the audience and put some distance on what he had said.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
VIDEO &#8211; David Frum on Pete Hegseth: ‘If You’re Too Drunk for Fox News, You’re Very, Very Drunk Indeed’ <a href="https://t.co/1yef9312n5">https://t.co/1yef9312n5</a>
&mdash; Grabien (@GrabienMedia) <a href="https://twitter.com/GrabienMedia/status/1864303525779341489?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 4, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Well, just given what one sees on camera, if you’re too drunk for Fox News, you’re very, very drunk indeed. So, that’s alarming,&#8221; Frum said. &#8220;In 1989, President George H.W. Bush nominated John Tower, senator from Texas, for Secretary of Defense. And Tower was a very considerable person, a real defense intellectual, someone who deeply understood defense, unlike the current nominee. And it emerged that Tower had a drinking problem. And when he was drinking too much, he would make himself a nuisance or worse to women around him.&#8221;
&#8220;And for that reason, his nomination collapsed in 1989. You don’t wanna think that our moral standards have declined so much that you can say, &#8216;Let’s take all the drinking, all the sex-pesting, subtract any knowledge of defense, subtract any leadership. And there’s your next Secretary of Defense for the 21st century,'&#8221; he added.
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/gift-guide/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://get.dailywire.com/gift-guide/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1732727087136000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3Ao27zcTCGutKhTz_xpaKC">CHECK OUT THE DAILY WIRE HOLIDAY GIFT GUIDE</a>
But his comments, according to Scarborough and Brzezinski, were not acceptable — and they addressed that just before cutting away to a commercial break.
&#8220;Before we go to break, a little earlier in this block, there was a comment made about Fox News in our coverage about Pete Hegseth and the growing number of allegations about his behavior over the years and possible addiction to alcohol or issues with alcohol,&#8221; Brzezinski said. &#8220;The comment was a little too flippant for this moment that we are in. We just wanna make that comment as well. We wanna make that clear. We have differences in coverage with Fox News and that’s a good debate that we should have often. But right now, I just wanna say to say there are a lot of good people who work at Fox News who care about Pete Hegseth and we’ll wanna leave it at that.&#8221;

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon – Season 8

Guest’s Anti-Hegseth Rant Is So Far Over The Line Even ‘Morning Joe’ Hosts Condemn It

Guest's Anti-Hegseth Rant Is So Far Over The Line Even 'Morning Joe' Hosts Condemn It

Pete Hegseth

Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk apparently struck a raw nerve, triggering MSNBC&#8217;s Joe Scarborough and Axios&#8217; Jim VandeHei, when he issued a blanket announcement to everyone on his social media platform, X: &#8220;You are the media now.&#8221;
VandeHei and Axios co-founder Mike Allen were honored at the National Press Club&#8217;s 2024 Fourth Estate Award Gala, and VandeHei lashed out at Musk directly during his remarks to Gala attendees.
&#8220;Everything we do is under fire. Elon Musk sits on Twitter every day — or X today — saying like, &#8216;We are the media,&#8217; &#8216;You are the media.&#8217; My message to Elon Musk is: Bull****. You are not the media,&#8221; VandeHei complained. &#8220;You having a blue checkmark, a Twitter handle and 300 words of cleverness doesn’t make you a reporter. &#8230; You don’t do that by popping off on Twitter. You don’t do that by having an opinion. You do it by doing the hard work.&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
NEW Axios CEO melts down over <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@elonmusk</a> telling 𝕏 users “You are the media now” — mounts passionate defense of dying legacy media:
&quot;My message to Elon Musk is b*llshit. You&#39;re not the media!&quot;
The MSNBC panel applauds:
“Social media people lying every day, every hour, every… <a href="https://t.co/SBwgI9hFfC">pic.twitter.com/SBwgI9hFfC</a>
&mdash; Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) <a href="https://twitter.com/WesternLensman/status/1861051982229786713?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 25, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
After playing a clip of VandeHei&#8217;s comments, &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; host Joe Scarborough seconded every word, leading his response with a slow clap.
&#8220;First of all, I&#8217;ve got to say, extraordinary content, it needed to be said, it continues to need to be said,&#8221; Scarborough said as cohost Mika Brzezinski agreed. &#8220;With all of the garbage that&#8217;s flying around on social media — lying about reporters, lying about the hard work they do, lying about the hard work editors do, lying about everything up and down about not only their alternative set of facts but their alternative set of facts about what people like you do.&#8221;
Scarborough kept going in that vein for several minutes, but when Musk got wind of it, he was not convinced.
&#8220;Yeah, whatever lmao. You are the media now. And legacy media know it,&#8221; Musk said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Yeah, whatever lmao. 
You are the media now. 
And legacy media know it. <a href="https://t.co/TWemmwMoqd">https://t.co/TWemmwMoqd</a>
&mdash; Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1861063141326573907?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 25, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The exchange comes as MSNBC — and a number of the network&#8217;s employees — waits to see what the future looks like once NBCUniversal spins off the far-left cable news network.
&#8220;What I find absolutely astounding about this is not his anger at Musk,&#8221; one person noted. &#8220;I can understand and even respect that to some degree. What absolutely baffles me is the total lack of introspection or self reflection as to why the media is so distrusted. Just go back over the past 5-10 years. It&#8217;s not hard to figure out. Maybe you should start going about gaining readers trust and turning out a quality product first.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
What I find absolutely astounding about this is not his anger at Musk. I can understand and even respect that to some degree. What absolutely baffles me is the total lack of introspection or self reflection as to why the media is so distrusted. Just go back over the past 5-10… <a href="https://t.co/YI2wSu3z5V">https://t.co/YI2wSu3z5V</a>
&mdash; Blume Industries CEO Balding 大老板 (@BaldingsWorld) <a href="https://twitter.com/BaldingsWorld/status/1861068793910296707?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 25, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;What the Axios CEO doesn’t seem to understand or accept is that X is the media now because of all the lying. If the corporate press hadn’t spent decades lying and misleading the public in really obvious, craven, and destructive ways, we wouldn’t be here. But they did so we are,&#8221; The Federalist&#8217;s John Daniel Davidson added.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
What the Axios CEO doesn’t seem to understand or accept is that X is the media now because of all the lying. If the corporate press hadn’t spent decades lying and misleading the public in really obvious, craven, and destructive ways, we wouldn’t be here. But they did so we are. <a href="https://t.co/j3mrxNbUll">https://t.co/j3mrxNbUll</a>
&mdash; John Daniel Davidson (@johnddavidson) <a href="https://twitter.com/johnddavidson/status/1861088323235930234?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 25, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon – Season 9

MSNBC And Axios In Joint Death Spiral Over Elon Musk Claim That Citizens ‘Are The Media Now’

MSNBC And Axios In Joint Death Spiral Over Elon Musk Claim That Citizens 'Are The Media Now'

Axios

Elon Musk

Social Media

&#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; host Mika Brzezinski made another stop on the apology tour as she and her husband and cohost Joe Scarborough attempt to do damage control and appease their left-leaning audience after they dared to take a meeting with President-elect Donald Trump.
Brzezinski and Scarborough announced during Monday morning&#8217;s broadcast that they had met with the president-elect at Mar-a-Lago in an effort to reopen the lines of communication after not speaking for a number of years. The move prompted critics on the left to say that they shouldn&#8217;t have offered Trump that kind of legitimacy — and critics on the right to wonder why, after they had compared him to Adolf Hitler, Trump would give them the time of day.
In the days since the pair have offered several explanations for their decision to meet with Trump — and they have repeatedly assured their audience that they still don&#8217;t agree with him on many things — and Wednesday was no exception.
&#8220;People are really scared,&#8221; Brzezinski told The Daily Beast editor-in-chief Joanna Coles and her <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mika-defends-mar-a-lago-visit-musk-trump-road-trip/id1767675909?i=1000677726300" target="_blank" rel="noopener">podcast</a> cohost Samantha Bee.
&#8220;I’ve been surprised at the backlash,&#8221; she said of their meeting. &#8220;And the way I look at it is, people are really scared. And it’s one of the reasons we went in there is people are really scared about Donald Trump’s comments that, you know, political adversaries, a lot of people are scared because of what has happened with abortion. These are all issues that are important to me and in some ways personal to me, but definitely personal to the people I really care about.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
Brzezinski went on to say that she believed it was part of her job to talk to people who might disagree or even attack her personally and that she felt she had made a mistake in not speaking with Trump over the last several years.
&#8220;Well, I mean, it’s my job to interview and talk to people I disagree with, feel threatened by or who have hurt my feelings in some way. So here’s how I do it. I do my job. I mean, do I really not go in there because he tweeted about me bleeding badly from the facelift at Mar-a-Lago, I don’t know, eight, nine years ago?&#8221; she asked. &#8220;I mean, we haven’t talked in seven years. And I will say that’s a problem, too. So I’m worried about myself and how I conduct myself in this media universe that we’re in, taking stock of everything that has happened. I don’t regret anything I’ve said during the campaign, and I stand by it. But I’m also looking at how to do things differently. And I would never turn down an opportunity to gain insider information. Never. So how I handle mean tweets or the personal stuff is that that’s just not something I’m supposed to worry about. That’s my job.&#8221;

The Apology Tour Continues: ‘Morning Joe’ Host Is Still Doing Damage Control Over Trump Meeting

The Apology Tour Continues: 'Morning Joe' Host Is Still Doing Damage Control Over Trump Meeting

2024 Election

CNN Republican commentator Scott Jennings was unconvinced — and amused — when fellow panelist Brian Stelter claimed on Tuesday that the hosts of MSNBC&#8217;s &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; had opted to meet with President-elect Donald Trump out of fear of &#8220;retribution.&#8221;
Stelter and Jennings sparred briefly on the topic during &#8220;CNN NewsNight&#8221; with host Abby Phillip as they discussed the fallout from a Friday meeting between Trump and &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
NEW: <a href="https://twitter.com/ScottJenningsKY?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ScottJenningsKY</a>&#39;s reactions are priceless as Brian Stelter ‘reports’ that Joe/Mika met with Trump because they feared retribution:
&quot;I mean, isn&#39;t it possible too that they&#39;re just two people who are so full of themselves, so full of self-aggrandizement that they would feel… <a href="https://t.co/Ecr6QItBq3">pic.twitter.com/Ecr6QItBq3</a>
&mdash; Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) <a href="https://twitter.com/WesternLensman/status/1859236824415166673?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 20, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Scarborough and Brzezinski announced during their Monday morning broadcast that they had met with Trump, explaining that they had felt the need to reopen the lines of communication ahead of a second Trump administration. But according to Stelter, the meeting had been requested at least in part because the longtime morning show hosts were concerned that the Trump administration might &#8220;target&#8221; them for harassment or even prosecution.
&#8220;Right. Detente, appeasement. I don’t know what to call it. You know, Joe and Mika didn’t say much about it today, but according to my sources, they believed … they credibly were concerned that they faced governmental and legal harassment with this incoming administration, essentially, that they feared retribution. And that’s partly why they sought out this meeting,&#8221; Stelter said.
&#8220;And to be fair, to Brzezinski and Scarborough, they’re not the only MSNBC hosts or the only – the word journalists is complicated because they’re more like personalities – but there are a number of journalists at places like the [Associated Press] and other big news outlets that are concerned about retaliation in the coming months. Anything from IRS audits to lawsuits and things like that. There are media outlets bulking up on lawyers, thinking about having more libel insurance, those sorts of things,&#8221; Stelter continued. &#8220;Now, I don’t know exactly what the specific concern Joe and Mika had was or wasn’t. But they’re not the only MSNBC personalities worried about retaliation. However, they are the only ones to go down to Mar-a-Lago and have a meeting.&#8221;
Jennings wasn&#8217;t buying it, however, and he said so: &#8220;I mean, isn’t it possible too that they’re just two people who think [they] are so full of themselves, so full of self-aggrandizement, that they would feel like that they would be personally —&#8221;
Stelter interrupted, arguing that the &#8220;Morning Joe&#8221; hosts were not alone in their fears.
<a href="https://www.amiracist.com/?_gl=1*jtghwp*_gcl_au*ODQ1NjYzNTg2LjE3Mjg5MDk3OTE.*_ga*MTc2NzM0NDQ2NS4xNzI4OTA5Nzkx*_ga_CZKR9ZYKJP*MTczMDEyMDgwOS40OS4xLjE3MzAxMjA4MzkuMzAuMC4w" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MATT WALSH’S ‘AM I RACIST?’ NOW STREAMING ON DAILYWIRE+</a>
&#8220;Well, I just, first of all, I can see why. Second of all, if that’s what happened and if that’s what they truly believed, why didn&#8217;t they go on TV and say that? ‘We went down there to meet with the president to tell him that, hey, anyone who’s been critical of you, you know, you should treat us like journalists and not like the enemy,'&#8221; Jennings replied. &#8220;They didn’t go on TV and say that, they went on TV and portrayed it much differently. So what I hear you saying in your reporting is they had a motive that they weren’t willing to disclose to their audience, which I think should get them more scorn today than they were already getting to begin with.&#8221;
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/morning-joe-hosts-blistered-over-attempt-to-restart-communications-with-trump" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Scarborough and Brzezinski</a> caught flak from both sides of the political aisle for meeting with Trump, with many on the Left claiming that such a meeting would legitimize the incoming administration. On the right, critics asked why Trump would give them the time of day after Scarborough and Brzezinski had happily joined the other media talking heads who called him a fascist, a Nazi, and worse.
&#8220;Hitler getting a lot more meeting requests than I would’ve thought,&#8221; Jennings said at the time.

CNN Panel Goes Sideways Over Claim That ‘Morning Joe’ Hosts Feared Trump’s ‘Retribution’

CNN Panel Goes Sideways Over Claim That 'Morning Joe' Hosts Feared Trump's 'Retribution'

Brian Stelter

Scott Jennings

Menu