Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, hosts of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” have had a rollercoaster of a relationship with President Donald Trump.
They were friends of Trump in the early months of his presidential campaign, often having him dial in to their show for small talk and praise as the Republican presidential primary unfolded. But the relationship eventually soured. The negativity peaked Thursday morning, when Trump attacked the hosts on Twitter and hurled sexist remarks at Brzezinski.
Friday morning, while reflecting on the insults, Scarborough claimed that Trump has changed.
“The guy that’s in the White House now is not the guy we knew two years ago,” Scarborough said. “The guy that’s in the White House now is not even close.”
Let’s be real: Trump is definitely the same guy he was two years ago.
As Scarborough and Brzezinski heaped praise on Trump in the early days of his presidential campaign, he was busy waging a campaign against immigrants, mocking the disabled and regularly making sexist and offensive remarks about women.
While announcing his presidential bid in June 2015, Trump called Mexican immigrants “rapists.”
“They’re bringing drugs,” Trump said at the time. “They’re bringing crime.”
While discussing the launch of Trump’s campaign, Scarborough compared him to “bigger-than-life people, colorful people that actually go out and make a splash on the stage.”
At a campaign rally in November 2015, Trump mocked Serge F. Kovaleski, a reporter with a congenital joint condition that limits flexibility in his arms.
Scarborough laughed out loud at the remarks. “There is one element of truth in what Trump’s saying,” he argued, and mimicked Trump’s offensive impression of the reporter.
In December 2015, Trump called for a “complete shutdown” of Muslims entering the United States, claiming the “hatred is beyond comprehension.”
“Where this hatred comes from and why we will have to determine,” he said in a statement. “Until we are able to determine and understand this problem and the dangerous threat it poses, our country cannot be the victims of horrendous attacks by people that believe only in Jihad, and have no sense of reason or respect for human life.”
While attempting to interview Trump about his calls for a ban, Brzezinski cautioned Trump that his rhetoric was “really scaring” a lot of Americans, including herself. But she and Scarborough continued to generally talk favorably about Trump; the business mogul even thanked them in February 2016 for being “supporters.”
And don’t forget all the sexist remarks Trump made before he was even a presidential contender ― including those from the infamous “Access Hollywood” recording from 2005, in which Trump can be heard bragging about getting away with grabbing women “by the pussy” because of his fame.
“I did try and fuck her,” Trump can be heard saying on the video in reference to an unnamed woman.
“I moved on her like a bitch, but I couldn’t get there. And she was married,” Trump added. “Then all of a sudden I see her, she’s now got the big phony tits and everything. She’s totally changed her look.”
That Scarborough and Brzezinski are only now recognizing Trump’s penchant for sexist, offensive insults doesn’t mean he’s changed. It just means they’ve had the privilege of not feeling subjected to his rhetoric.
Welcome to the real world, guys.
Before You Go
