On Monday’s Morning Joe, co-host Mika Brzezinski hammered conservative women for daring to work for Donald Trump. Host Mika Brzezinski berated White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Kellyanne Conway throughout the show for defending the President. At the start, she went as far to say, “I don't know how anybody can defend this President, even if it's their job.”
Throughout the show the same clips of the two women defending President Trump’s tweet, accusing the Obama administration of surveillance during the 2016 campaign, were replayed. Brzezinski seemed to imply that this situation was worse because the two people defending Trump were women.
The first time the clips ended, host Joe Scarborough questioned Kellyanne Conway’s statements: “Let's find out together? They are out speaking for the President of the United States. I have heard from a lot of insiders, nobody knows where he got this information from. ‘Let's find out together’ sounds a lot like Democrats saying, ‘Let's pass ObamaCare so we can find out what's in it.’ His own spokespeople are going out this morning saying they don't know where he got his information. I was hearing that Saturday morning-”
Scarborough continued: “I was hearing that Saturday morning from people close to the President. Here we are three days later, they still don't know where he got the information to make this up. It looks like it really is from a website and a talk radio show host.” Brzezinski muttered: “Not proud to be a woman looking at that.”
Later in the show, Brzezinski introduced two new guests into the segment, Hellene Cooper a corresponded for the New York Times and Joanna Coles the Chief Content Officer for Hearst magazine. Brzezinski began: “I couldn't help but notice in the past half hour that the people that are being put out by the White House to clean up this just— mess doesn't even describe it — are women and I'm not proud.” Following the clips Brzezinski sarcastically asked, “Are these White House spokes people?”
Coles responded:
Well I watched poor Sarah wrestling yesterday, but to be fair she was wrestling with Martha. So you do have women interrogating about it too. You’re sitting on the other side of the desk so I feel this is sort of an equal opportunity slugfest at the moment. But I will say I went to see a horror movie yesterday afternoon, the new one by Jordan Peele, ‘Get out’ and it felt like nothing compared to the actual horror show going on in Washington. I mean, it’s like, how does popular culture respond at a moment like this.
Brzezinski continued to condemn the women in the White House and attempted to get others to join her: “When you look at the job of the White House spokesperson and how history has shown them to be, are these two women representative of what we want? Are they doing their job and exactly what is it they are— One of them I won't even have on this show.”
Cooper made an effort to answer tactfully: “I don't envy them right now because they have a tough product to try to sell. That's got to be pretty hard. You just noticed that we didn't see— see her exactly backing up what President Trump was saying. That's — that’s got to be tough for them as well.”
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This is the full exchange that took place on March 6
MSNBC-Morning Joe
6AM TEASE
6:12:38 - 6:13:50MIKA BRZEZINSKI: I am going to get to President Obama's response in just a moment. But Harold, you know, there is a lot of reporting I have behind the scenes that Reince Priebus is flailing, to say the least, at his job -- I'm hearing that from Bob – Acosta, Robert Acosta who is coming on later to talk about all of the different source he has on a story that’s similar. But I also don't understand why the former head of Breitbart appears to be handing the President some fake news and the President is just rifting on it wildly with no sense that he is President of the United States, no respect for the office, and calling a former President of the United States unbelievable names. And we are at a low point in American history and I don't know how anybody can defend this President, even if it's their job. Like you've got to have a job after this. You've got to look in the mirror after this. Sarah Huckabee or whoever is going to speak out next. You have to look in the mirror and think about this country after this is over. You need to think of the end game here, because there is one at the rate we are going.
(...)
7:50 TEASE
7:55:44 - 7:56:26JOE SCARBOROUGH: Let's find out together? They are out speaking for the president of the United States. I have heard from a lot of insiders, nobody knows where he got this information from. Let's find out together sounds a lot like Democrats saying, let's pass Obamacare so we can find out what's in it. His own spokes people are going out this morning saying they don't know where he got his information. I was hearing that Saturday morning-
MIKA BRZEZINSKI Those aren't spokes people, Joe.
JOE SCARBOROUGH: From people close to the President. Here we are three days later, they still don't know where he got the information to make this up. It looks like it really is from a website and a talk radio show host.
MIKA BRZEZINSKI Not proud to be a woman looking at that.
(...)
8:30 TEASE
8:34:05 - 8:36:41MIKA BRZEZINSKI: I couldn't help but notice in the past half hour that the people that are being put out by the White House to clean up this just— mess doesn't even describe it, are women and I'm not proud. Take a look. Dan?
SAVANNAH GURTHRIE: Just so we are clear on this one specific point, is his information that President Obama tapped his phone based solely on something he read in the media? Yes or no?
SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS: Look I haven't had the chance to have the conversation directly with the President. And he's at a much higher classification than I am. So he may have access to documents that I don't know about—
KELLYANNE CONWAY: He is the President of the United States. He has information and intelligence that the rest of us do not. And that's the way it should be for presidents.– But again, if we don't know, let's find out together.
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: Are these White House spokes people? I mean– how would you describe them? Joanna Coles, go.
JOANNA COLES: Well I watched poor Sarah wrestling yesterday, but to be fair she was wrestling with Martha. So you do have women interrogating about it too. You’re sitting on the other side of the desk so I feel this is sort of an equal opportunity slug fest at the moment. But I will say I went to see a horror movie yesterday afternoon, the new one by Jordan Peele, "Get out” and it felt like nothing compared to the actual horror show going on in Washington. I mean, it’s like, how does popular culture respond at a moment like this. You know, I have no interest any longer in seeing Homeland because it couldn't be as interesting as what's going on. And you think, how is anyone going to be able to compete with this?
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: So, and Hellene, I mean– is this -- when you look at the job of the White House spokesperson and how history has shown them to be, are these two women representative of what we want? Are they doing their job and exactly what is it they are— One of them I won't even have on this show.
HELLENE COOPER: I don't envy them right now because they have a tough product to try to sell. That's got to be pretty hard. You just noticed that we didn't see– see her exactly backing up what President Trump was saying. That's – that’s got to be tough for them as well. Because I mean, you are sitting -- you keep saying we don’t know what we don't know. Well the President actually tweeted that he did know. So that's a tough one to try to sell.
JOANNA COLES: Well, and clearly, they hadn’t– he hadn't included them before he sent the tweet. Right? So they had no forewarning, they had no idea what he was basing this on. And so you say, they are left to clear up the mess.
