Ever wonder why MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough is constantly attacking Marco Rubio? He’s called the Republican “a guy that’s running for student government” and a “liar.” National Review, in a lengthy piece on Friday, investigated Scarborough’s anger.
Writer Elaina Plott explained that the Morning Joe host “has been so hostile in public and private toward the Florida senator that it’s now turning heads in Republican circles.”
She added:
Scarborough has been vocal with his criticisms in private as well as in public. He aired his sentiments at a private New York City gathering for top Republican donors last month, to the surprise of many attendees. “He trashed Rubio,” according to one attendee who characterized his remarks this way: “‘Looks like he’s twelve,’ ‘not his turn,’ ‘why doesn’t he stay in the Senate and learn something and run in 2032.”
As for possible reasons, Plott writes:
Scarborough continues to harbor political ambitions, of which he has made no secret. When he said he was considering a presidential bid, his ruminations were highly publicized. His rudimentary plans included a visit to New Hampshire along with a bevy of aides; according to one source, the footage was aired extensively on Morning Joe despite internal pushback. He also organized a dinner at his home for a group of Politico reporters to discuss his place in the Republican field. Scarborough’s name has also been floated as a potential vice-presidential nominee for former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, who toyed with presidential bids in both 2012 and 2016.
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“Ten years ago, Joe was viewed as a strong and likely candidate for the U.S. Senate,” says Florida Republican state senator Don Gaetz, a longtime friend of both Rubio and Scarborough. “Had he not resigned, had he stayed and pointed himself to a Senate run, it’s easy for me and everyone who knows Joe to imagine him being in the U.S. Senate today, and being in the position Marco Rubio is today.”
Both men, of course, achieved elective office in Florida. The National Review story can be found here.
