Under Fire for Being at Mar-a-Lago on New Year’s Eve MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe’ Scarborough Attacks Reporters on Twitter
“Can We Talk About How Ridiculous It Is to Show Up at Mar-a-Lago at 7PM on NYE to Set Up an ‘Interview'”
Joe Scarborough is under fire once again for appearing to be close with Donald Trump, and he’s fighting mad and fighting back. A New York Times article on Trump’s for-profit New Year’s Eve celebration at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach noted that the MSNBC host of “Morning Joe” and his co-host, Mika Brzezinski, were at the $525 to $575 per-person party, leading some on Twitter, including reporters and other notables, to question Scarborough’s journalistic credibility.
One of the top breakout reporters during the 2016 election, Sopan Deb, noted Scarborough’s closeness to Trump:
Morning Joe’s hosts partied with Trump last night at Mar-A-Lago. Last year, Trump publicly thanked them for support. https://t.co/gLHtsOloph pic.twitter.com/6znKSoNf67
— Sopan Deb (@SopanDeb) January 1, 2017
Scarborough went on a tweetstorm to defend himself:
Partied? You’re very good at pushing fake news. You should write for CNN. Apparently making up facts is fine if you’re writing about us. https://t.co/mCe0EYghRB
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
Last year I said Trump’s campaign was racist, xenophobic and disqualifying. But be snide while making facts up. Partied? Not even close. https://t.co/mCe0EYghRB
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
1. I “partied” last night by watching Groundhog Day and Ghostbusters with my kids. Then watched the Mariah Carey dumpster fire.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
2. Around 7pm, I had a preset meeting with PEOTUS before his party trying to set up an interview (much like reporters at CBS & NYT do.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
3. The event was black tie. Both Mika and I were in casual clothes, did not attend the party, and left before any “partying” began.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
4. Nothing that Mika and I did in setting up this meeting was any different than what all good reporters and news hosts try to do daily.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
5. Anyone suggesting otherwise is a hypocrite who ignores what great journalists from Ben Bradlee to Tom Brokaw have done for years.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
6. I hope we get the interview.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
7. Stop lying about us.
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
8. Happy New Year🎉
— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) January 1, 2017
Former Clinton campaign national press secretary Brian Fallon posted this dig on Twitter:
When judging if @JoeNBC is too close to Trump, important to consider attire.
Street clothes = “on assignment”
Sleepwear = “Breaking news” pic.twitter.com/XZhHyyejvl— Brian Fallon (@brianefallon) January 1, 2017
Of course, many wondered why a trip to Florida on New Year’s Eve to lobby for an interview with Trump by two top MSNBC hosts was necessary, but Scarborough insists it was.
Ok, so Joe wasn’t “partying” but can we talk about how ridiculous it is to show up at Mar-a-lago at 7PM on NYE to set up an “interview” https://t.co/gFrRStKLyA
— Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) January 1, 2017
A well-respected writer from Salon posted Scarborough blocked her:
Lol. Apparently Scarborough didn’t like the fact that I wondered whether he paid $ to get in to Trump’s NY Eve party. He blocked me.
— digby (@digby56) January 1, 2017
This from a well-regarded freelance reporter specializing in intelligence who is rapidly gaining attention for her insights after Trump’s recent promise to start a nuclear arms race:
All you need to know on the dynamics of “Morning Joe”/Trump relationship. Now ask who else he is blackmailing. https://t.co/mAL1gh8Keo pic.twitter.com/nHHMcKsoqV
— Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) January 2, 2017
Left out of article is that Trump threats to “Morning Joe” came soon after Joe revealed Trump obsessed w/using nukes https://t.co/HtpN8X2Sbk pic.twitter.com/8P56HY29fb
— Sarah Kendzior (@sarahkendzior) January 2, 2017
Nearly a year ago MSNBC was forced to defend Scarborough and Brzezinski after CNN reported they watched the New Hampshire primary with Donald Trump in his hotel room, which they denied. But for a year or more, the pair have been the subject of much speculation over their relationship with Donald Trump, leaving many to wonder.
UPDATE:
NY Times reporter Maggie Haberman who wrote the article putting Joe and Mika at the Trump gala, for “a preset meeting with PEOTUS before his party trying to set up an interview,” as Scarborough claims, posted this photo to Twitter of the event:
More pic.twitter.com/R2j9uIvAU7
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) January 2, 2017
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