The crew of Morning Joe on Friday were very sympathetic to a porn star actress who turned up in a Ted Cruz ad, arguing that her “honest work” in a commercial shouldn’t be taken away. Yet, the hosts and the guests of the MSNBC show have been much tougher on Cruz himself, allowing a platform for Chris Matthews to call him a “troll.”
Regarding the news that the Cruz commercial, in which soft-porn actress Amy Lindsay appeared in, had been pulled, Mika Brzezinski defended, “It's honest work. Why would you take it away from her? That’s good that she’s not doing porn.” She later added, “I think it's honest work and they should have kept the ad. Kept her busy.”
A snarky Joe Scarborough lectured, “‘Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.’ Maybe she's turned over a new leaf or something like that.” Scarborough then mocked, “Or maybe Ted Cruz just likes hiring porn stars. Which is it?”
This forgiving attitude towards the porn star hasn’t extended to Cruz himself. On February 10, Hardball’s Chris Matthews appeared on Morning Joe to call Cruz a “troll” who “operates below the level of human life.” On January 18, co-host Mika Brzezinski wondered about the senator, “How do you make deals if everyone hates your guts?” On that show, Scarborough called Cruz a “pariah.”
A partial transcript of the February 12 segment, which aired at 6:19am ET, is below:
WILLIE GEIST: Did you see the Ted Cruz ad yesterday?
NICOLLE WALLACE: I did. I did. I thought the actors and actresses were really realistic. It was one of the best commercials I’ve ever seen.
GEIST: Take a close look here. This is an ad from the Cruz campaign hitting Marco Rubio on the question of immigration.
[Cruz ad.]
...
GEIST: The keen eyes at BuzzFeed news reported the woman, Amy Lindsay, has appeared in several soft porn movies. The Cruz people said "The actress responded to an open casting call and was not vetted by the production company." They’ve pulled the ad and said they obviously would not have cast her had they any idea.
BRZEZINSKI: Really? Really?
STEVE RATNER: But it was only soft porn. [ Laughter ]
GEIST: Steve!
NICOLLE WALLACE: Wow. A defense of soft porn from Steve Rattner.
WALLACE: I don't want to know that you know the difference. I don't even know the difference but whatever. Don't explain it to me, okay. But listen—
....
BRZEZINSKI: But you guys, it's honest work. Why would you take it away from her? That’s good that she’s not doing porn.WALLACE: I think if you’re the guy chiding Trump for swearing, you can’t then cozy up to a porn star.
GEIST: But we don’t blame the campaign, do we?
BRZEZINSKI: But it’s saving her. It’s salvation, Nicolle!
7:21
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: So we'll show you a new Ted Cruz ad just out this morning. We'll bring in Steve Kornacki, Andrea Mitchell --
JOE SCARBOROUGH: Is this the one with the porn star?
BRZEZINSKI: I think it's okay. I think it’s honest work and they should have kept the ad. Kept her busy.
SCARBOROUGH: Well, you know what, I guess so. Now, Steve I heard Steve say well, it was only soft core porn.
7:26
RATTNER: Mika thinks that, and I agree with her, that because this woman is doing honest work she should be allowed to be doing honest work.
BRZEZINSKI: Sam Stein, don’t you agree. I mean, it’s a real job. Don’t — Don’t judge her.
SCARBOROUGH: Everybody is talking about Christian values.
BRZEZINSKI: Maybe she was supporting her family.
SCARBOROUGH: “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” Maybe she's turned over a new leaf or something like that.
....
SCARBOROUGH: Or maybe Ted Cruz just likes hiring porn stars. Which is it?
