Morning Joe's shock support for Trump DC crackdown as MSNBC star reveals liberals' secret hypocrisy
Without naming names, the MSNBC host detailed how he'd received calls from his friends who quietly expressed support for the deployment of federal agents to DC.
'Their political allegiance? 'All democrats,' Scarborough said.
He detailed how 'people have been calling [him] over the past couple days, going, you know: "Washington, should have gotten involved years ago".'
'And then they'll go on Twitter, [and] go: "This is the worst outrage of all time",' the pundit later proclaimed. 'Which I understand, it's like people need to express their concerns about Donald Trump going too far.
'We saw what happened back in 2020 with the National Guard. Certainly can't have any repeat of that. Don't want the federalization of the entire city,' Scarborough continued.
'But man, I don't care what the crime statistics say. Crime has been a problem in this city for the 32 years I've been living inside and outside of the city.'
The anchor went on to recall a conversation he and his cohost-turned-wife Mika Brezinski had with a Democrat 'who lives in the city'.
Without naming names, the MSNBC host detailed how he'd received calls from his friends who quietly expressed support for a deployment of federal agents to DC. 'All' the citizens cited were Democrats, Scarborough said
'[They] won't walk more than three blocks in DC at night without feeling [unsafe.]
'Complete opposite of New York City, where I walk 40-50 blocks at night and not think twice about it,' Scarborough complained.
'In New York City, in Midtown, Downtown - I mean, New York is a safe, safe place.
'Washington, DC? Man, it's door to door,' he went on. 'I mean, I get one of those bikes – you know me, I love riding the bikes around – I'll ride around and I go door to door. I don't slow down. It's very dangerous there.'
The host conceded that crime has come down since a post-pandemic peak seen in 2023, where the murder rate recorded a high not seen in 26 years.
'There is no sense of security for people who have been living in that city for 30 years,' Scarborough, 62, subsequently said.
The spiel served as a continuation of another offered by the former Florida Republican on-air last week, days before Trump announced a federal takeover of the municipality's police force to combat high rates of crime.
'Certainly don't need the National Guard in there, or certainly not Marines,' he said Friday, with Brzezinski by his side.
'But you look at Washington, DC, and it's been dangerous for years.
'There have been, you know, a year, a couple of years here, a couple of years there, where it's been a bit better - but certainly over the past five years it has just been an absolute mess.
'Its quality of life has been terrible,' Scarborough continued. 'We've heard it from people that have gone there to visit and are horrified that the nation's capital is as dangerous as it is.
'We've heard it from students, we've heard it from business people, we've heard it from people that work on the Hill.
'I've 25-30 years of friends asking, 'really this is how the nation's capital runs"?'
The couple - said to be in the midst of a power play with their MSNBC bosses as they migrate to a new, NBCU-less company being called Versant - have broadcast out of the capital since 2007.
At the time, DC's murder rate was in the midst of a remarkable downturn following years of high crime in the 80s and 90s.
The trend was all but reversed in 2020 following the pandemic, and has since shown signs of reversing again - dropping by 34 percent in 2024 and down 12 percent from that currently from this time last year.
However, the capital's homicide rate - roughly 25 percent last year - remains higher than average when compared to other major cities.
Still, Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee blasted Trump this week for what they framed as an abuse of power. Members of the national guard were dispatched Monday. Troops were given orders to report to their stations Tuesday morning
Still, Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee blasted Trump this week for what they framed as an abuse of power.
'Deploying the military on DC's streets only creates fear and chaos,' members wrote in a post to X after a press conference at the White House Monday where Trump announced his plans.
'Donald Trump will be held accountable for this brazen power grab.'
'Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged-out maniacs and homeless people, and we're not going to let it happen anymore,' Trump said at the briefing.
'We're not going to take it.'
Members of the National Guard were given orders to report to their stations on Tuesday morning. Trump signed the order summoning them the day before.
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