MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” anchors Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski and Willie Geist laid into the Republican Party after Donald Trump’s allies took over the Republican National Committee and then conducted a massive layoff. Those staffer who weren’t let go will ultimately get the boot if they aren’t “sufficiently loyal” to Trump’s entourage, the group argued.
“That’s sort of the definition of a cult,” Geist said.
On Tuesday, Scarborough went right in with breaking down how he feels the republican party is in deep trouble.
“Anybody who has cared for a healthy republican party, hasn’t been warning about this for years,” Scarborough said on Tuesday, speaking over the show’s lower third banner that read “Trump’s Campaign Facing Financial Peril.” “If you elect Donald Trump, you elect a guy who is not fit to be president, first of all. But, secondly, is going to put the republican party in a terrible, terrible position.”
Scarborough’s remarks came as a response to Trump’s takeover of the RNC, which has resulted in Trump advisers firing of more than 60 officials, and bringing in Trump’s family members, like his daughter-in-law Lara Trump, who is now the committee’s chair. Trump’s close ally Michael Whatley is now sitting co-chair, after the former president’s team kicked out Ronna McDaniel, who’s served the committee since 2017. Though Trump’s campaign claims it won’t be grabbing at the RNC’s pockets to financially support Trump’s hefty legal bills, Scarborough felt otherwise.
“He has looted his campaign funds to pay for legal bills, and now he’s firing people inside the RNC and putting family members in there to pay even more of his legal bills and he’s doing this as he’s starting to go into general election,” Scarborough said. “Republicans have selected a candidate who’s gutted his campaign cash. By the way, this has a huge impact on people running for the Senate, running for the House,” Scarborough said. “And because he’s gutting people in there who were competent, most likely, they’re now going to have a bunch of cult members going in, personality cult members going in there, and the incompetence will grow by the day.”
MSNBC anchor Willie Geist weighed in, saying Trump’s comrades are cleansing the committee and anyone who isn’t on board will be wiped out.
“What happened yesterday was a purge, Geist said. “It was a loyalty test. If Lara Trump, who is Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law, she’s the co-head, but she’s really running the RNC at the behest to Donald Trump to see who’s loyal to Donald Trump and who’s not. And if you’re not sufficiently loyal, you’re gone.”
Trump made the move to cut down the RNC just eight months before the November election, slashing jobs in the committees’ communications, data and political departments, per The New York Times. So far, at least four senior staffers have been fired, including Elliot Echols, the RNC’s political director.
