Joe Scarborough Praises ‘Stylistically Better’ JD Vance But Warns He’s A ‘Liar’ And ‘Anti-Democratic’
Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough praised Republican running mate Senator JD Vance (R-OH) for trying to show his “agreeable” side during the CBS-hosted vice presidential debate but warned that “clarifying” 2020 election question proved that he was ultimately “anti-democratic.”
Scarborough’s take began by emphasizing the quality of Vance’s performance, reflecting that he was “stylistically better” than rival Tim Walz, criticizing the Democrat’s “shaky start” and fumbling admission that he was a “knucklehead” in response to a challenge on his past claims of having been in China during 1988’s Tiananmen Square protests.
He showed a side he has not shown before and that is he tried to be more likable. He tried to be agreeable. The people who knew him before he decided to be a Trumper said he was a nice guy.
The host continued to argue that Vance appeared to be trying to distance himself from former President Donald Trump despite repeating his “lies.”
Almost, you got a sense that this election may end and he doesn’t want to completely tie himself to Donald Trump. He is 40 years old. He has a future. While Trump likes going to war nonstop against everybody, you got to say has JD Vance decided: ‘You know what? I’m going to try to salvage my political career even if Donald Trump goes up in flames.’ And so that would have all been fine and dandy.
No doubt this morning, there will be consternation in Mar-a-Lago that everybody is saying JD Vance should talk to the rest of the campaign and Donald Trump should shut up because JD Vance is better at this than Donald Trump. Not even a close call.
He is smoother. If you want to say a smooth liar, you can. But Donald Trump, he is getting old. They are not even letting him do 60 Minutes because they know he is not capable of doing it. Because he can’t answer policy questions. But, still, JD Vance was stylistically better. He told a lot of lies about ACA and other issues…
However, Scarborough noted the one deal-breaking moment from the debate that he could not get around was Vance’s answer to the moderators’ question around Trump’s denial of the 2020 election result – which the senator himself had previously said he would not have certified.
I will say this, J.D. Vance was very clarifying at the end of this debate. He told viewers everywhere that were watching that if you hate American democracy when things don’t go your way, vote for me. If you hate everything that [founding fathers] James Madison put together and Alexander Hamilton put together in the constitution, if you hate the tradition of peaceful transition, that really, really defines and ensures American democracy, you hate that if Donald Trump doesn’t win every election, vote for me.
It was one of the most clarifying moments in any presidential or vice presidential debate we could ever see, because he clearly said he was going to continue the lies of Donald Trump and not even answer debates at question.
Acknowledging that he was not a Democrat, being a former Republican and that he was looking at both candidates as an independent voter, Scarborough concluded:
You know, people ask me why don’t you support the Republicans? JD did my work for me last night because one side is anti-democratic. The other side is pro-democracy, pro-constitutional republic and pro-James Madison checks and balances. Pro-peaceful transfer of power.
Watch above on MSNBC.
