Joe Scarborough Brutally Mocks Mike Pence’s Fealty to Trump: January 6th ‘Wasn’t a Little Misunderstanding’

Joe Scarborough opened Friday’s Morning Joe with thorough and brutal mockery of former Vice President Mike Pence. To be more exact, comments he made Thursday night at a rally in New Hampshire in which he diminished the events of January 6th.

“You know, President Trump and I have spoken many times since we left office,” Pence told the Manchester, N.H. crowd on Thursday. “And I don’t know if we’ll ever see eye to eye on that day. But I will always be proud of what we accomplished for the American people over the last four years.”

Scarborough opened by mocking what clearly sees as the performative style of Pence’s, calling it the “worst Ronald Reagan imitation ever.” He then used a Casey Kasem’s America’s Top 40 metaphor to adjudge fellow Republican presidential hopefuls he called “truly bad actors” and their “faux” populist messages like Senators Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley, and John Kennedy. But it was Mike Pence who bore the brunt of Scarborough’s animus.

Pence was, of course, at the Capitol building to oversee the Congressional certification of the Electoral College that eventually was interrupted by Trump supporters who were chanting “Hang Mike Pence.” Oh, and a hangman’s noose and gallows just happened to be suddenly outside the Capitol. Even if that was a coincidental prop, Pence and his family had to be ushered to a Capitol building basement by Secret Service, who were gravely concerned about his safety.

So Pence giving Trump a pass on a day in which he and his family were under a dire security threat? It seems a thing worthy of mockery.

“His family’s life was in danger. This is not an opinion. This is a matter of fact. It’s the timeline,” Scarborough noted. “And Republicans will tell you that as well as Democrats that were there. His life was endangered. He was chased out. He had secret service rushing him and hiding his family.”

“When Donald Trump found out about that, he then knowing Pence was in danger, then tweeted something to stir up the crowds who were already chanting ‘Hang Mike Pence,'” Scarborough concluded. “This wasn’t a little misunderstanding. This isn’t ‘you say potato, I say potato.’ This is about life and death, and he wants to get elected to a position. He wants the approval of people so badly he just lets that slip by.”

On a production note, this was the week that Morning Joe returned to its New York studios. After a few days of recalibrating the rhythms of in-studio panel discussion different from remote discussions, the show seems to have found its sea legs. And viewers are likely delighted that producers have given up on the moving handheld camera zooms making some feel seasick.

Watch above via MSNBC.

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