Joe Scarborough throws MSNBC under the bus as ‘Morning Joe’ finally returns to air: ‘Surprised’ and ‘very disappointed’
MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” returned early Tuesday — quickly throwing the network under the bus for the show missing from air the previous day, with Joe Scarborough saying he was both “surprised” and “very disappointed.”
The left-leaning station pulled its morning talk show off the air on Monday following the assassination attempt on Trump over fears that one of its anti-Trump guests would make an inappropriate comment, according to a CNN report.
Scarborough and co-host wife Mika Brzezinski, staunch Joe Biden advocates, jumped right into coverage of the assassination attempt Tuesday, while initially only hinting at Monday’s drama.
“Good morning, it is very good to be here,” Brzezinski said with a knowing smile.
It took an hour to fully address the controversy over the previous day’s absence.
“I just wanted to briefly talk to our friends and viewers that watch us every day and talk about what happened yesterday,” Scarborough said as he opened the key 7 a.m. segment
“We were told in no uncertain terms on Sunday evening that there was going to be one news feed across all NBC News channels yesterday … and that was going to be one news feed across all NBC News channels, that we were going to stay as a network in breaking news mode throughout all day yesterday.
“That did not happen,” Scarborough noted. “We don’t know why that didn’t happen.
“Our team was not given a good answer as to why that didn’t happen — but it didn’t happen,” he said bitterly.
“We were also told it was going to happen throughout the day. And I guess, after there was such a strong blowback about yesterday morning, I guess they changed their plans,” he continued.
“We were very surprised. We were very disappointed. And if we had known that there wasn’t going to be the one news feed from NBC News across all NBC News channels … we obviously would have been in yesterday morning,” he said.
“We all wish we would’ve been here yesterday.”
Scarborough then defiantly told viewers it would never happen again. “Next time we are told there’s going to be a newsfeed replacing us, we will be in our chairs,” he said, with his wife chuckling in agreement.
Here’s the latest on the assassination attempt against Donald Trump:
Would-be Trump assassin Thomas Crooks visited gun range dozens of times — including Christmas — for ‘intense preparation’- Newly surfaced texts show Trump rally gunman was on authorities’ radar more than 90 minutes before shooting: report
- FBI to conduct victim interview with Donald Trump after assassination attempt
- Ex-Trump doc says FBI’s Wray is ‘wrong’ to doubt ex-prez was struck by bullet: ‘Absolutely no evidence’
- Trump defends female Secret Service agent who was criticized after assassination attempt: ‘So brave’
“The newsfeed will be us or they can get somebody else to host the show,” Scarborough added rebelliously.
MSNBC rolled out breaking news coverage Monday morning instead risking having someone on the show who could paint it and the network in a bad light, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.
An NBCUniversal spokesperson denied the CNN report.
At 6 a.m. Monday — when “Morning Joe” starts — viewers instead watched NBC News special reporting and then coverage simulcasting from the company’s streaming service, NBC News Now.
“They were shocked,” an MSNBC insider said of the show’s production team, according to Fox News. “It was supposed to be one feed like it was this weekend. It was supposed to be one feed with all NBC News platforms.”
