Donald Trump finally spoke out in support of Roy Moore despite the Republican Senate candidate being accused of sexually assaulting underage girls. In response, the media didn't hold back their criticism, including the hosts on MSNBC.
MSNBC on GOP
It all started earlier this month when the Washington Post broke their bombshell story that accused Roy Moore of attempting to engage in sexual activity with at least four underage girls, with the oldest story dating back to 1979. The paper cited 30 sources to back up their claims, which has resulted in even more women coming forward, including at least one who says she was sexually assaulted by the GOP Senate candidate.
Moore seemed primed to defeat his Democratic challenger Doug Jones in the red state of Alabama, but has watched his poll numbers drop despite denying any wrongdoing. The Republican Party has since been split in their reaction, with some defending Moore, while others have called for him to drop out of the race. The White House didn't address the allegations at first, but that all changed when Donald Trump spoke to reporters on Tuesday and gave his support for Moore's campaign by insisting that they can't afford to have Jones in the Senate. These issues were highlighted during the November 22 broadcast of "Morning Joe" on MSNBC.
During a round-table discussion on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," hosts Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough were joined by network contributors and part-time hosts Willie Geist and John Heilemann.
The panel discussed the ramifications of Donald Trump's supporting Roy Moore, and what it means for the GOP moving forward.
Donald Trump doesn’t believe women, but he does believe Roy Moore: https://t.co/M1bNs0Xfs8 pic.twitter.com/azZejSisT3
— Slate (@Slate) November 22, 2017
"You have the president of the United States now saying clearly and out loud he takes the side of Roy Moore," Willie Geist said, to the apparent agreement of the panel.
"He takes the word of Roy Moore versus the word of the nine accusers," he continued. Geist went on to note that the Republican Party will be known as "the party of a pedophile for the rest of Roy Moore’s term," while adding that Trump "will be saddled with that."
Morning Joe: If Trump Gets Roy Moore Elected, GOP Becomes ‘Party of Pedophiles’ https://t.co/f18wcQaeLK pic.twitter.com/w2oHPLLCUe
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) November 22, 2017
Joe Scarborough concurred, while predicting that Roy Moore will likely lose the election, despite the voting demographics being in his favor.
Doubling down, John Heilemann pointed out that the worst case scenario for the GOP could be for Moore to lose the election with the president's support. "You lose the seat, and in the process of losing it you’ve become the party of pedophiles," Heilemann said to the gasp of Mika Brzezinski.
Next up
With Donald Trump lending his support to Roy Moore, the president told reporters that he was still deciding on whether or not to head to Alabama next week to help campaign. Trump's current approval rating is around just 35 percent, and only time will tell if that number drops after coming to the side of an accused sexual assaulter.