The “Morning Joe” team dedicated part of its Wednesday broadcast to discussing the public’s increasingly negative perception of elected Republicans and why that is a “terrible sign” for the party heading into next year’s midterm elections.
“That sounds like one of my concerts,” “Morning Joe” host Joe Scarborough joked after playing a clip of Republican New York State Rep. Elise Stefanik being booed off stage Monday at a ceremony in her New York home district. “I’m serious, this is just a terrible sign for a party. Republicans are scared to go out in public now, and [those boos are] one reason why.”
“This reminds me so much of 2009 during the Obamacare hearings,” the host continued, drawing a parallel between the current political moment and the red wave backlash that occurred following Obama’s 2008 election. “In 2008, Barack Obama and the Democrats win a historic landslide. The next year … Democrats all over the country [were] just getting hammered in town hall meetings, getting booed at town hall meetings. And then, of course, one year later you have the Tea Party winning big.”
“Morning Joe” panelist Willie Geist went on to refute Stefanik’s excuse that the boos she received were caused by “far left” agitators. “Every time this happens at a town hall meeting, Republicans say, ‘It’s Democrats!’” he observed. “If you watch these town halls over these last several weeks, that’s just not the case. It’s constituents in these red districts many times yelling at their representatives because of their votes on this so-called Big, Beautiful Bill.”
Scarborough & Co. continued to discuss the negative effects that everyday Americans feel due to President Trump’s Big, Beautiful Bill, which the “Morning Joe” team believes will make the road ahead for Republicans even more difficult this year and next. “The biggest problem is Donald Trump’s not going to be on the ballot next year. Republicans don’t do well when Donald Trump’s not on the ballot,” Scarborough noted.
“Democrats have their lowest approval ratings ever. They’ve worked hard to get those low approval ratings — and yet they’re still beating the Republicans by five points,” he added. “It’s terrible news. Not for Donald Trump. He’s not running. It’s terrible news for those Republican members of Congress.”
“You can see the Democrats are trying to find their footing, and it’s quite embarrassing actually,” Scarborough concluded. “They don’t know what to do. I have a good idea. Instead of trying to school Donald Trump, talk into the camera about affordability! Talk about making groceries more affordable. Talk about what you’re going to do for housing.”
