MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough didn’t hold back in his criticism of J.D. Vance, accusing him of using emotionally charged language to deflect from the violent rhetoric emanating from Donald Trump’s camp, which has recently contributed to widespread turmoil.
On Sunday, the Secret Service recently intervened to prevent an apparent assassination attempt on Trump in West Palm Beach, Florida—just two months after a similar incident resulted in the death of one of Trump’s supporters and injuries to two others. In response, Vance claimed that Democrats were to blame for these threats.
“The big difference between conservatives and liberals is that no one has tried to kill Kamala Harris in the last couple of months, and two people now have tried to kill Donald Trump in the last couple of months,” Vance said. “I’d say that’s pretty strong evidence that the Left needs to tone down the rhetoric and needs to cut this crap out.”
Scarborough, clearly outraged, slammed Vance’s statement as classic gaslighting and refused to engage with the hypocrisy of his argument. Instead, he highlighted a report by New York Times’ Peter Baker, which points out the dangerous consequences of Trump’s inflammatory speech.
“This is what you would call gaslighting,” Scarborough said. “I’m not even going to respond to the hypocrisy.”
Baker’s report reveals how Trump’s rhetoric has fueled political violence, stating, “At the heart of today’s eruption of political violence is Mr. Trump, a figure who seems to inspire people to make threats or take actions both for him and against him.” Baker notes Trump’s history of using violent language, from encouraging physical altercations to mocking a violent attack on a Democratic leader’s spouse, and his failure to denounce the January 6 Capitol riot.
Scarborough also shared his personal experiences with Trump’s violent rhetoric, recalling Trump’s threats against him and others.
“It’s barely even worth responding to, and I can say that on a personal level,” the Morning Joe host said. “You know, him suggesting that I should be executed after he was angry at my Covid reporting — which basically was just reading his quotes over six months’ time — agreeing that Liz Cheney should be sent before a military tribunal because she endorsed Kamala Harris, suggesting that violence should be done to others, and his supporters suggesting that the hosts of the ABC debate should be imprisoned.”
Co-host Mika Brzezinski added that Trump has even hosted individuals with extremist views at Mar-a-Lago, highlighting a troubling alignment with undemocratic values.
Scarborough concluded, “The real introduction of violent rhetoric into American presidential campaigns has been unprecedented since Trump first appeared on the political stage in 2016.”
Watch the segment below:
