So Much for ‘Restraint'! Scarborough Calls Hegseth ‘Child, Little Punk,’ Trump a ‘Fascist’

On Wednesday’s Morning Joe, Jim VandeHei urged Americans to “sober up” from hyperpartisan excess and exercise “self-restraint” in their political language. Mika Brzezinski agreed: “really good point.” We asked whether Joe Scarborough would follow that advice.

It took one day to get the answer.

On Thursday’s show, Scarborough skipped the sobering up and went straight for the 151-proof stuff. Reacting to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, he lamented that “a child is allowed to hold that position,” calling him an “immature child” who “doesn’t even understand,” before escalating to “a punk—a little punk.”

Turning to President Trump, Scarborough defended calling him “a fascist” and using “fascist rhetoric.”

So much for “self-restraint.”

He also mocked the idea that inflammatory attacks on Trump could lead to violence:

“You can’t say… the president’s acting like a fascist… because you might cause people to shoot him—as if the two go together.”

“As if the two go together”?

That’s not how Scarborough has talked about the effects of Trump’s rhetoric. For years, he has argued the opposite—that Trump's language can incite "civil war," “move people to violence," and even leave “blood on his hands.” 

Now, suddenly, the notion that harsh criticism of Donald Trump might endanger the president’s life is something for Scarborough to scoff at—“as if the two go together.” Three assassination attempts not enough for you to see the connection, Joe?

Here's the transcript.

MS NOW
Morning Joe
4/30/26
5:59 am EDT

PETE HEGSETH: I look forward to sharing the incredible successes of our military, achieved in a matter of weeks. President Trump, unlike other presidents, has had the courage to ensure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon, and he's ironclad in that. 

We have the best negotiator in the world driving that deal. The biggest challenge, the biggest adversary we face at this point are the reckless, feckless, and defeatist words of congressional Democrats and some Republicans. 

JOE SCARBOROUGH: How sad. How sad. First of all, that a child is allowed to hold that position, an immature child that doesn't even understand. There's so many things he doesn't understand. And the first thing he doesn't understand is that the people that are on that committee are members of the Armed Services Committee. 

And as a former member of the Armed Services Committee, I can tell you most of those people have military bases in their district. Most of those people represent the men and women in uniform that fight for this country, that are deployed across the world, that are deployed across the Middle East. And their first concern is the safety and the security of those soldiers and sailors, airmen, Marines, Coast Guard members. 

That's their concern. And this guy acts like a punk. A little punk. 
. . . 

Isn't it pretty remarkable. Pretty remarkable that we've been lectured by MAGA world over the past week that you can't say anything. You can't say, oh, the president's acting like an authoritarian because you may get him killed. Oh, the president is actually, he's acting like a fascist or he's speaking, he's using fascist rhetoric. Oh! You can't say that. You can't say that because you might might cause people to shoot him is as if the two go together. 

. . . 

What actually are the reasons why we went to war? Because he really still didn't give us a clearly defined answer. He did say, and I'm glad he said it, there can never be a nuclear Iran. So if he decides, and this administration decides, to cut and run while Iran still has nuclear weapons, then well, I guess by his own definition, there's a failure. 

It's an embarrassing exercise, and I do mean this. He's not only... So embarrassing. It's not only embarrassing for the United States of America. I keep saying this. It's embarrassing for the Republican party. It's embarrassing for the President of the United States, who deserves and needs somebody better running the Pentagon than this child who embarrasses Donald Trump every time he goes out and talks.