The Morning Joe folks are afraid—very afraid. They painted a Democrat doomsday scenario this morning in which Joe Biden would implode, Elizabeth Warren would win the nomination . . . and proceed to lose to President Trump.
According to Joe Scarborough, behind the scenes among Democrat insiders, "everybody" says Biden's campaign is a "slow-motion train derailment," and "they believe, and many fear, that Elizabeth Warren is moving toward this nomination."
Scarborough cited a recent New Hampshire poll in which the only Dem contender not beating Trump was Warren. Scarborough said that there was a "growing fear" among Democrats that Warren is running a strong primary campaign, but "will not be a strong general-election candidate." Scarborough spoke of Dem fears that Warren would get "blown away" in states like Texas, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania.
Mika Brzezinski made an unadulterated pitch for Biden, saying he is the Democrats' "best bet" to win the general election. Brzezinski said it would be hard for Warren or Kamala Harris to win over people who voted for Trump in 2016 but are now seeking an alternative.
Richard Haass of the Council on Foreign Relations contributed some unintentional humor. In the event Biden does indeed fade, Haass wondered whether there would be time for another "centrist" candidate to take his place. The only name he mentioned as a "centrist" substitute for Biden was . . . Kamala Harris. Centrist, Harris? Right, if you consider it centrist to support a hard-left agenda including unrestricted abortion, repealing the law making illegal entry into the US illegal, elimination of the Electoral College, avid support for the Green New Deal, and slashing of the defense budget.
In her brief Senate career, Kamala scored only 4.5 percent with the American Conservative Union.
Note: interesting that Mika Brzezinski has become such a big Biden fan and is skeptical about Warren's odds against Trump. In the run-up to the 2016 race, Mika was a huge Warren fan, hoping she'd get into the race and describing her as a "formidable" presidential candidate.
Here's the transcript.
MSNBC
Morning Joe
9/11/19
6:28 am EDT
JOE SCARBOROUGH: You talk to Democrats, and I know you [Mike Barnicle] do as well -- we all do. And it seems as if — I mean, this is just — I’m just reporting what everybody’s saying behind the scenes. And that is Joe Biden’s campaign seems like a slow-motion train derailment. That they believe he’s not going to make it to the end. It’s just what you hear from almost every Democratic insider, and they believe, and many fear, that Elizabeth Warren is moving toward this nomination eventually.
If that, in fact, is the case, those New Hampshire numbers, it’s only one poll, but those New Hampshire numbers in the head-to-head matchup with Trump, actually underline something that I hear from Democrats: a growing fear that she’s running a strong campaign but will not be a strong general-election candidate
. . .
But you go down to Elizabeth Warren, the person that most Democratic insiders say right now seems to be on the pathway to winning the nomination, and she’s losing [against Trump in New Hampshire], and she’s the next-door neighbor. That’s sort of like she’s got the home-field advantage.
. . .
But there are a lot of Democrats who fear that Biden’s going to collapse, Warren’s going to win, and then they’re going to have a matchup where Elizabeth Warren gets blown away in states like Texas, and states like Wisconsin, and states like Pennsylvania that Republicans should be losing.
. . .
RICHARD HAASS: I think there’s also the question, Joe, that if you’re right that Joe Biden does ultimately fade, that is, his support is broader than it is deeper, one of the questions is when and how, and is there time for somebody else to step up and claim the centrist alternative to the progressives, whether it’s Kamala Harris or somebody else.
. . .
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: The other possibility is Joe Biden does really well, and for Democrats that is the best bet, because it’s going to be pretty hard for an Elizabeth Warren or a Kamala Harris to establish that comfort level with perhaps the people who voted for Trump who need a place to go, who won’t do it again. They’ll vote for Biden. I’m not sure they’ll vote for anybody else in the Democratic field. And so, the hope for Democrats, the best hope, is that Biden gets really strong.
