The cast of “Morning Joe” said the battle over immigration now unfolding at the U.S. border was nothing short of a struggle for the “soul of America.”
On set, the cast continued its third full day of railing against the Trump administration policy of separating undocumented parents from children on Wednesday, presidential historian Jon Meacham said the atmosphere echoed the era of George Wallace.
“This is as if George Wallace had won in 1968, that’s where we are,” he told show co-host Mika Brzezinski. “The one through-line here from Charlottesville to this issue is — to use your phrase — a return to the most disturbing elements of white supremacy, white male supremacy to be precise, in the national character.”
Meacham said that if Trump had any interest in preserving his historical legacy, he would listen to what he had to say on “Morning Joe.”
“I promise the Fox cycle, the Breitbart cycle, is very quick. History is forever,” Meacham warned. “If I had three minutes with President Trump I would say ‘we know you care about success, we know you care about ratings, why don’t you do what other great presidents have done, reach beyond your base, surprise us.”
Meacham said he would frame the issue as a matter of self-interest because Trump was not capable “in a moral sense” of doing the right thing.
MSNBC has several anchors headed to border cities in Texas to as they continue to report from the ground. On Tuesday evening, Rachel Maddow choked up just before her handoff to Lawrence O’Donnell as she read about detention centers for toddlers.
Despite mounting pressure to end the family separation policy from both Democrats and Republicans, Trump dug in yesterday during a speech to small business owners.
“I don’t want children taken away from parents,” said Trump, who again said the policy was out of his hands. “When you prosecute the parents for coming in illegally, which should happen, you have to take the children away.”
Watch above.