"Morning Joe" rapprochement at Mar-a-Lago
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough reveal their Mar-a-Lago visit on Monday's show. Screenshot: MSNBC
Over bacon and eggs at Mar-a-Lago, "Morning Joe" co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski reestablished diplomatic relations with their Florida neighbor, President-elect Trump, after years of taunting him — they knew he was watching as they warned he was an existential threat to democracy.
Why it matters: Trump used to be a close friend of the show who was a frequent guest, and would call the hosts on their cellphones during breaks.
- But they hadn't spoken since March 2020, aside from a quick call by Scarborough to Trump after the attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The hour-plus meeting, revealed on Monday's MSNBC show, was held at 8 a.m. Friday in a room at Mar-a-Lago featuring a portrait of Trump in tennis togs.
- "Joe and I realized it's time to do something different," Brzezinski told viewers, "and that starts with not only talking about Donald Trump, but also talking with him."
- She noted that her late father, the famed diplomat Zbigniew Brzezinski, "often spoke with world leaders with whom he and the United States profoundly disagreed."
Behind the scenes: The hosts were attacked online for "normalizing" Trump. But Axios is told they also received a torrent of supportive texts from politicians, journalists and ambassadors.
- We hear that Trump, amid his defiant transition moves, told them he wants to have better relations with the press, and to make some deals with Democrats.
The sides know they'll disagree, but agreed they'll try to do it without being personal and insulting.
- Scarborough told viewers they "talked about a lot of issues, including abortion, mass deportation, threats of political retribution against political opponents, and media outlets."
The other side: Trump told Fox News Digital in an interview Monday: "In order to Make America Great Again, it is very important, if not vital, to have a free, fair and open media or press."
- "I received a call from Joe Scarborough requesting a meeting for him and Mika, and I agreed that it would be a good thing if such a meeting took place," Trump said.
Trump called the meeting "extremely cordial": "Many things were discussed, and I very much appreciated the fact that they wanted to have open communication ... In many ways, it's too bad that it wasn't done long ago."
- Watch the video from Monday's show ... Disclosure: Axios' Mike Allen and Jim VandeHei are longtime guests on "Morning Joe."
