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MS NOW host Joe Scarborough urged the US not to run out of the Iran war because of the midterm elections, saying it would be “another terrible mistake.”
“Far be it for me to be the guy that’s talking about wanting to be in forever wars, I most certainly do not,” Scarborough said Tuesday during “Morning Joe.”
“In fact, we were very clear, I was very clear that I thought going into Iran was a mistake, but just as that was a terrible mistake, we can’t make another terrible mistake on how we get out of Iran,” the running commentary continued.
“And if we got out of Iran, playing right into Iran’s hands as some people are suggesting in the Republican party … it would be a nightmare to cave to a terror state for political reasons.”
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The lefty news anchor had taken aim at remarks from Fox News host Laura Ingraham, who said on her own show that “the clock is ticking” for President Trump to end the conflict, especially if Republicans “want to win in November.”
“Fascinating, if you listen to them talking about politics,” Scarborough opined. “And it’s, of course, something the Iranians always depend on. They depend on Americans being strapped down to elections coming up that create false deadlines, that put us in a weak place to negotiate so we always have to take a soft, weak, tepid line.”
He nodded to former President Jimmy Carter’s inability to secure the release of 52 hostages held in Tehran ahead of his failed re-election, making him appear weak in his 1980 campaign against former President Ronald Reagan, who beat him.
“Jimmy Carter had it hanging over him in the 1980 election against Ronald Reagan, so the Iranians knew time and time again they could take advantage of that weakness,” Scarborough said.
“Now, of course, you’re hearing some talk about an upcoming midterm election – not even a presidential election – where we’re supposed to back down, cave to Iran, give them an MOU [Memorandum of Understanding] where they get half a trillion dollars and become the most powerful country in the entire region.”
In June, the US and Iran signed a 14-point memorandum of understanding that formalized a ceasefire, reopened the Strait of Hormuz and included a potential waiver on oil sanctions and the unfreezing of hundreds of billions of dollars in Iranian assets.
But the deal – which gave the two nations 60 days to reach a final agreement on Iran’s nuclear program – fell apart after Iran attacked commercial vessels in the strait and the US retaliated with airstrikes.
“We tried to bribe them, make no mistake of it, the Trump administration tried to bribe Iran with [$500 billion], after worrying about $1 billion or $2 billion of cash on pallets [delivered to Iran by former President Barack Obama],” Scarborough ranted.
“The Trump administration tried to bribe Iran to the tune of $500 billion, half a trillion dollars – that was more than Kaiser Wilhelm II had to pay for Germany after World War I!” he continued.
