“Morning Joe” host Mika Brzezinski found herself arguing with both Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and her own co-host Joe Scarborough when she began grilling the senator on his support for the Senate GOP’s letter to Iran.
On Monday, the Iranians confronted the U.S. about the letter during nuclear talks.
“I guess the question I have first is, was the intention of the letter to get in the way of negotiations as it is proved to?” Brzezinski asked Cruz.
“Look, the intention of the letter was two things. Number one, to defend our national security. I think this deal that is being negotiated by the Obama administration is profoundly dangerous,” Cruz began.
Brzezinski interrupted: “So it was intended to get in the way of the deal?”
“It was intended to stop a bad deal,” he shot back. “Absolutely.”
The two went back and forth as Brzezinski repeatedly brought Cruz back to the results the letter was having on the nuclear talks.
“To interfere with a negotiation with Iran and to actually possibly even undermine a deal in the making? Basically the next step to that is to just get right down the road to war,” she said.
At that point, co-host Joe Scarborough, who has sparred with Mika over the Middle East in recent weeks, couldn’t resist but to jump in to Cruz’s defense.
“No, it’s not. No, it’s not. Hold on a second,” Scarborough said. “No, it’s not. Forgive me for interrupting but the choice is not between war and a bad deal.”
Brzezinski ignored her co-host and turned back to Cruz.
“What am I, Willie, a potted plant?” Scarborough asked of co-host Willie Geist.
“But this is all deflecting, the history lesson,” Brzezinski said after a lecture from both Cruz and Scarborough about the Reagan era. “It’s deflecting from whether or not the intention of the letter is what’s happening.”
“And I’m concerned you’re saying you’re liking the effect it’s having,” she added.
FYI tpm,there is no video
Republicans are so good at goose-stepping. They keep repeating “bad deal” in unison and they got their right-wing shock troops repeating it too. THERE. IS. NO. DEAL. FINISHED. TO. KNOW. THAT. IT. IS. BAD. Ted Cruz’s entire act is based around feigning ignorance because he assumes enough people are stupid enough to take what he says at face value (and in the case of his own state, he’d be right).
Here is the other part Cotton (who, like Cruz, knows better) pretends not to understand - the sanctions were passed on Iran under the presumption Iran was acting in bad faith. When the other nations (especially Russia and China) get the impression it’s actually the United States doing that, the entire thing collapses and the only next logical step is allowing Iran to have a nuke or war. They aren’t honest enough to say that though.
No, Mr. Scarborough, you are not a potted plant. A potted plant is sensible enough to keep its mouth shut when it has nothing of value to contribute.
oddly, the previous segment was with joe klein who just returned from several weeks in israel and had described the letter as disgusting and destructive to the negotiations. wonder why he wasn’t kept around for the segment …
One morning where Mika wasn’t her usual insipid self. As for Cruz and Scarborough two tea baggers grasping for points.