Leftist MSNBC hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski met with President-elect Donald Trump over the weekend allegedly out of fear.
“According to two sources with direct knowledge of the matter, Scarborough and Brzezinski were credibly concerned that they could face governmental and legal harassment from the incoming Trump administration,” CNN’s Brian Stelter reported on Tuesday.
Watch how CNN’s lone conservative, Scott Jennings, reacted to Stelter’s report:
NEW: @ScottJenningsKY‘s reactions are priceless as Brian Stelter ‘reports’ that Joe/Mika met with Trump because they feared retribution:
“I mean, isn’t it possible too that they’re just two people who are so full of themselves, so full of self-aggrandizement that they would feel… pic.twitter.com/Ecr6QItBq3
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) November 20, 2024
In a follow-up published Wednesday, Puck News‘ Dylan Byers added that Scarborough and Brzezinski are especially afraid that, if confirmed, Attorney General nominee Matt Gaetz will open an investigation into the decades-old death of Scarborough’s former intern.
“Joe and Mika have told friends and associates they’re afraid that Trump and Gaetz will resurrect a decades-old, totally bullshit, birther-level conspiracy theory about the death of Lori Klausutis, a 28-year-old intern in Scarborough’s former Florida congressional office who died in 2001 from complications relating to a heart condition, and use it to apply legal pressure on Scarborough and otherwise make his life a living hell,” Byers reported.
“The couple’s anxiety stems, in particular, from testimony that former White House communications director and current View co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin gave in 2022 during the January 6 hearings, during which she recounted running into Gaetz outside of the Oval Office. Farah Griffin testified that Gaetz was carrying a folder filled with ‘conspiracy theories about Joe Scarborough murdering his intern,’ which he then presented to President Trump, who later tweeted about it,” he added.
When will they open a Cold Case on the Psycho Joe Scarborough matter in Florida. Did he get away with murder? Some people think so. Why did he leave Congress so quietly and quickly? Isn’t it obvious? What’s happening now? A total nut job!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 12, 2020
A blow to her head? Body found under his desk? Left Congress suddenly? Big topic of discussion in Florida…and, he’s a Nut Job (with bad ratings). Keep digging, use forensic geniuses! https://t.co/UxbS5gZecd
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 24, 2020
Scarborough and Brzezinski “are petrified of retribution and of Gaetz opening an investigation into Joe and the intern,” a source told Byers. “That’s what this was about. It has nothing to do with ratings or Comcast. It’s all about fear of retribution and investigation.”
Another source added that the two believed that, by meeting with Trump, they could reduce his desire for payback and revenge.
Reached for comment, Scarborough referred Byers to an MSNBC spokesperson who subsequently denied this characterization of the duo’s motivation and claimed it was false and inaccurate.
Speaking Monday on “Morning Joe, Brzezinski defended the visit with Trump by citing a need for “constructive” unity.
Listen:
(Video Credit: MSNBC)
“We know this will be a consequential presidency,” she said. “The question is whether it will be constructive. It will take a new approach from all sides, from both parties, and a leader who can bring them together, and only time will tell if Donald Trump can be that leader.”
“As for us, we also let him know that we will continue to speak truth to power and push back hard when called for, as we have with all presidents,” she added.
“Don’t be mistaken,” Scarborough then chimed in. “We are not here to defend or normalize Donald Trump. We are here to report on him and to hopefully provide you insights that are going to better equip all of us in understanding these deeply unsettling times.”
All this comes as MSNBC is facing both a deep post-election decline in ratings, a post-Trump-meeting decline in ratings, and even a selloff by its parent company, Comcast.
“MSNBC may not have its name for long,” according to The Daily Beast. “The network, along with its sister business network CNBC, could have to change its name after its parent company Comcast announced on Wednesday it will spin off nearly all of its cable networks, splitting MSNBC from NBC News.”
“The cable channels, which also include USA Network, the Golf Channel, and a handful of websites such as Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes, would become part of a new company tentatively named SpinCo,” the reporting continues.
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