On Tuesday, we surmised that Joe Scarborough had gone "all in" with the Democrats. Scratch that. Scarborough has now placed himself even to the left of many lefties.
On today's Morning Joe, Scarborough defended Judge Emmet Sullivan's outburst yesterday at Michael Flynn's sentencing hearing. This, while many liberals, like Dan Abrams, and even the young lefties over at Vox, have criticized the judge.
When Washington Post columnist David Ignatius said that the judge "went a little too far in accusing Flynn of treason, and he got one date badly wrong" [about when Flynn stopped acting as a foreign agent], Scarborough cut him off:
"A couple of things on that," interrupted the host.
Scarborough then proceeded to claim that Sullivan's mistake on the timing of Flynn's work as a foreign agent was "a distinction without a difference." This despite the fact that Sullivan himself later said that he "felt terrible" about having said it!
With respect to Sullivan's intemperate accusation of treason, Scarborough said:
"Federal judges--I'm sorry . . . that's just what federal judges do. If they're angry, they come in and they shake people up [giving examples]: 'hey why didn't you guys figure out?' -- uh, treason!' Just anybody who's been [in federal courts?]
Ignatius meekly backed down: "Joe, your basic point is absolutely right."
Mediaite founder Dan Abrams, now ABC News' chief legal analyst, said that “I think [Flynn] was treated unfairly today . . . I have sympathy for Michael Flynn now, and it’s fair to say that at this hearing he got railroaded.” Mediaite said Abrams was "particularly troubled by Judge Sullivan asking prosecutors about treason."
At Vox, Dylan Matthews laid out a detailed case demonstrating that Flynn's actions did not constitute treason, citing among others a law professor who called the accusation "a preposterous stretch."
Scarborough seems in the grip of an unhealthy obsession with Trump. Perhaps it has to do with boosting him so much during the primaries.
A partial transcript is below:
Morning Joe
12/19/18
6:08am ET
DAVID IGNATIUS: The judge just blew a gasket. The language he used was extraordinary: "I'm not hiding my disdain ; I'm not hiding my disgust." I think he went a little too far in accusing Flynn of treason, and he got one date badly wrong, implying that Flynn had done things after becoming National Security Adviser. He actually did before, but --
JOE SCARBOROUGH [interrupting]: -- Well, a couple of things, a couple things on that, though, David. The latter [the mistake as to when Flynn acted as a foreign agent] is a distinction without a difference . . And on the first part [the treason accusation], I mean—federal judges—that's just what -- I'm sorry, Joyce [Vance, former US attorney] can tell us this in a little bit. That's just what federal judges do. If they're angry, they come in and they shake people up: "hey, why didn't you guys figure out? -- uh, treason!" I just, anybody who's been --
IGNATIUS: Joe, your basic point is absolutely right.
