The Dictatorship
The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe: From “Narco-Terrorists” to “Distressed Mariners”
This is the Dec. 10 edition of “The Tea, Spilled by Morning Joe” newsletter.Subscribe hereto get it delivered straight to your inbox Monday through Friday.
The president is perfectly fine. Just ask him. He took a cognitive test.
“Person, woman, man, camera, TV.”
In a Truth Social rantlast night,Donald Trumpchanneled his best Joseph Stalin, calling The New York Times the “enemy of the people.”
What set him off? A story that he nodded offin last week’s Cabinet meeting. That was enough for him to brand the reporters — who had the facts right — “Enemies of the People.”
It’s worth remembering where that language comes from. After 30 years of show trials and the endless slaughter of Soviet citizens,Nikita KhrushchevcondemnedStalin’s cynical use of the term “enemy of the people,” warning that it enabled the “most cruel repression” of political opponents, facts be damned.
But this is America, and Trump would never want violence to befall employees of the Times. Would he?
After calling the reporters “seditious” and “even treasonous,” Trump then shifted into Jan. 6 mode, declaring that because the Times is made up of “true Enemies of the People, we should do something about it.”
Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild!
But wait, there’s more. The president’s post then bragged about “taking what is known as a Cognitive Examination,” insisting that “few people would be able to do very well, including those working at The New York Times,” and reminding his followers that he “ACED all three of them” in front of numerous unnamed doctors and experts.
Person, woman, man, camera, TV.
Trump’s declaration of fitness came days after another clash, when he lashed out at an ABC News reporter for quoting back what he had said just days earlier.
“I never said that,” Trump groused. “Fake news.”
After being reminded that he had, in fact, said that exact thing a few days before, the cognitively perfect president mumbled something about following the Pentagon’s advice.
And then, of course, last night’s Truth Social screed.
Maybe the president was exhausted after traveling to Pennsylvania yesterday for the White House’s carefully crafted Affordability Tour, where Trump proceeded to mock concerns about …affordability,telling members of his audience they were doing better than ever.
After all, are they going to trust Trump or their empty wallets?
No wonder his approval rating has sunk into the 30s.
No wonder Miami elected its first Democratic mayor in almost 30 years.
No wonder Republicans keep getting hammered at the ballot box over affordability while Americans grow increasinglyuneasyabout their own economic futures.
But Trump is undeterred. He rants on into the night about creating “the Greatest Economy in the History of our Country.”
Nope. Not out of touch at all.
Person, woman, man, camera, TV.
“He’s a sleepy son of a bitch who destroyed our country.”
President Donald Trump,seeming to project in the direction of his predecessor,Joe Biden
SOURCE: Politico/Public First2,098 U.S. adults online, Nov 14-17
At the top of The New York Times last night: a stunning reportabout how the Trump administration is quietly repatriating survivors of its Venezuelan “boat strikes.” According to the Times, Trump officials are going to extraordinary lengths to prevent these men — endlessly labeled as “narco‑terrorists” by Trump officials — from entering the U.S. legal system, where their identities and stories could face public scrutiny.
The administration’s workaround, according to multiple officials who spoke to the Times on condition of anonymity: quickly sending them back to their home countries before courts or reporters can ask questions, referring to them in some cases as “distressed mariners.”
It’s a revealing twist: Men once branded dangerous enough for lethal first and second strikes are now treated as hapless sailors in need of rescue.
And here’s why that matters: A trial on U.S. soil could undermine the administration’s justification for these attacks — and open the door to war crimes charges. And if they’re not the terrorists Trump claims? Then those war crimes investigations could turn into murder cases.
Real narco‑terrorists would be rushed to the United States and prosecuted for crimes against America. Instead, these men disappear into thin air with the assistance of the very people who tried to kill them at sea just weeks earlier.
All to keep Americans from learning the truth.
EXTRA HOT TEA
TROUBLE IN COAL COUNTRY
While President Trump was onstage last nightin the key swing state of Pennsylvania, Miami elected its first Democratin a generation. Not exactly the split-screen image the campaign dreamed of.
And the political signs aren’t looking much brighter in the Keystone State. Just next door to Mount Pocono — where Trump held his rally at a casino resort — sits the swing county of Luzerne.
Two years ago, Republicans controlled 10 of 11 county commission seats there. After the latest election? They’re down to just three.
A CONVERSATION WITH VAUGHN HILLYARD
Vaughn Hillyardwas on “Morning Joe” today to report on President Trump‘s speech in Pennsylvania last night. Hillyard, a veteran of covering more than 200 Trump rallies, said the president’s message was more disconnected from the political realities on the ground than he had ever witnessed.
Willie Geist: What was the reaction to the president’s speech last night from some of his supporters you spoke to?
VH: I’ve covered almost 200 of these speeches over the last 11 years, and this one had the highest cognitive clash I have seen over the course of this Trump era.
Mika Brzezinski: Why?
VH: Because of the conversations I’ve had over the last 72 hours in this community of 3,000 people in northeastern Pennsylvania. When you ask folks about the economy, health care premiums are skyrocketing, the price of groceries continues to increase, inflation is still where it was when President Biden left office, and they are really concerned.
WG: What other concerns did they talk to you about?
VH: Wage growth is a big issue here. It has declined, particularly among low-income and middle-class Americans. I was talking toDavid Metersa father of two, just yesterday, and he told me he’s having a hard time telling his kids that he can’t get them treats at McDonald’s at the end of the week — because his margins are so tight.
MB: Were others equally concerned?
VH: Yesterday before the rally started, I went up and down the line of folks going into his rally and asked about the report card they would give this current economy under the Trump administration.
WG: How did they grade him?
VH: President Trump gives himself an A plus-plus-plus. But I was hearing some B’s, D’s and C’s because the folks in that room are living an experience completely counter to the one that the president was painting last night at the rally. He says this is the golden age of America. It doesn’t feel that way, even to some of his strongest supporters.
This interview has been condensed and edited for brevity and clarity.
AUSTRALIA LOGS OFF ITS KIDS
The Sydney Harbour Bridge is illuminated in Australia. Australian landmarks are illuminated on the first day of the national under 16 social media ban coming into effect.
Today kicks off a bold new social experiment in Australia — or, perhaps more accurately, a socialmediaexperiment.
In a first-of-its-kind move, the country has banned usersunder age 16 from creating accounts on 10 popular platforms. The government says the restriction is needed to protect young people from the darker corners of online life: cyberbullying, heightened anxiety and the small but real risk of predatory targeting.
The consequences fall squarely on the companies. Platforms that fail to keep underage users out could face fines in the tens of millions of dollars. But kids who sneak on anyway — and the parents who quietly enable them — won’t face penalties at all.
And teenagers seem well aware of the loophole. A survey by the Australian Broadcasting Corp.of more than 17,000 Australians under age 16 found most don’t expect the ban to work. Three in four said they would keep using social media regardless.
Still, the rest of the world is watching. Several countries are already eyeing Australia’s law as a potential model as they weigh their own limits on youth social media use. In the United States, a Quinnipiac University poll last year found almost 6 in 10 voters would favor a similar ban.
MS NOW reached out to the companies behind all 10 affected platforms. Most said they plan to comply. Reddit did, too — though it voiced “deep concerns,” arguing that the rule could “make young people less safe online” and undermine free expression.
Australia has taken a dramatic first step. What remains to be seen is whether it sticks — or becomes one more rule teenagers figure out how to get past.
ONE LAST SHOT
Gene Simmons, a founding member of the rock band Kiss, testifies before the United States Senate. Why? Who cares? The dude who sang “Calling Dr. Love” is testifying on Capitol Hill.
CATCH UP ON MORNING JOE
SPILL IT!
Next week, actorSimu Liujoins us to discuss his upcoming spy thriller series“The Copenhagen Test.”Want to ask a question? Send it overand we will pick our favorite to ask on the show!
Did you enjoy this newsletter? Let us know what you think.
Former Rep. Joe Scarborough, R-Fla., is co-host of MS NOW’s “Morning Joe” alongside Mika Brzezinski — a show that Time magazine calls “revolutionary.” In addition to his career in television, Joe is a two-time New York Times best-selling author. His most recent book is “The Right Path: From Ike to Reagan, How Republicans Once Mastered Politics — and Can Again.”
A Republican congressional candidate Jackson Lahmeyer has dropped out of a runoff for a U.S. House in Oklahoma following reports that he had sent intimate text messages to a woman who was not his wife.
“After prayerful consideration with my wife, Kendra, and my team over the last twenty four hours, I’ve made the difficult decision to suspend my campaign for Congress,” Lahmeyer, a candidate for Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District, said in a statement Wednesday.
“I do not want to be a distraction to my family, my church, and the great people of Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District, who deserve a strong conservative voice representing them in Washington,” he added.
President Donald Trump initially endorsed Lahmeyer, whom he called a “MAGA Warrior,” in May but withdrew his support following the controversy. Soon after, Trump endorsed Lahmeyer’s opponentMark Tedford, who now becomes the Republican nominee by default.
“I greatly appreciate Jackson Lahmeyer’s hard work under difficult circumstances — He has always been with me, and I will always be with him,” Trump wrote on Truth Social Wednesday. “But, when it comes to the current Congressional race for Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District, I will be supporting America First Patriot, Mark Tedford. Mark is Pro Trump and MAGA all the way!”
Lahmeyer, a pastor Sheridan Church in Tulsa, centered his congressional campaign around his Christian faith.
Lahmeyer dropped out of the race after the Daily Mail reported Sunday that he had exchanged numerous romantic text messages with Caitlin Simmons Key, who worked as a fundraiser for his campaign. In one text message obtained by the Daily Mail, Lahmeyer allegedly invited Key into his hotel room. Key also alleged that Lahmeyer once professed his love to her.
“There’s a real problem with the fact that he’s married and a pastor,” Key told the outlet. “There is a responsibility when you are leading people in the name of Christ to hold yourself to a higher standard.”
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.
President Donald Trump has digitally signed the memorandum of understanding with Iran while at dinner in Versailles with French President Emmanuel Macron, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced Wednesday.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also digitally signed the memo, according to Sharif.
The agreement between the United States and Iran establishes a framework for negotiations aimed at permanently ending the conflict, which began when Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu directed a joint attack on Iran on Feb. 28.
Sharif said in a statement the agreement now goes into “immediate effect.” He noted that the first steps are for Tehran to “instantly reopen” the Strait of Hormuz and for the U.S. to “immediately lift” its naval blockade against Iran in the strait.
“The signing of this agreement at the highest level of the respective governments demonstrates the commitment of both sides to a diplomatic resolution of the conflict,” Sharif said in a statement.
Officials will hold a formal signing ceremony in Switzerland on Friday, Sharif said. A U.S. official did not respond to MS NOW’s questions on if an official document of the agreement will be released to the public.
According to the memothe U.S. and Iran have agreed to finalize a deal within 60 days, “extendable with mutual consent.” The agreement also calls for an “immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.”
Despite the memo’s explicit inclusion of Lebanon, Israeli leaders and U.S. officials continue to offer conflicting views on how that will be implemented. U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said Israel’s war against the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah is not part of the agreement, while Netanyahu vowed to remain in “security zones” in southern Lebanon.
Iran has also reaffirmed that it would not “procure or develop nuclear weapons,” which was a central issue Trump cited when defending the conflict in Iran. Both the U.S. and Iran also agreed to discuss how Tehran will dispose of its highly enriched uranium stockpile, with supervision from the U.S. and the International Atomic Energy Agency.
The agreement also includes an end to the U.S.’ naval blockade against Iran in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes, with a goal of restoring pre-war maritime traffic to the region.
“May this Memorandum of Understanding serve as an enduring foundation for greater understanding, mutual respect and shared prosperity for the complete region,” Shebaz said.
Emily Hung is an associate White House producer for MS NOW.
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.
The Dictatorship
The more Senate Republicans learn about Trump’s Iran deal, the more they don’t like it
Republicans started the week on Capitol Hill already uneasy about President Donald Trump’s still unreleased plan to end the U.S.-Iran war.
But by Wednesday, as details of the memorandum of understanding finally began to emerge, the unease turned into outright opposition.
“This is the worst foreign policy blunder in decades,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., posted online.
Cassidy, who recently lost his re-election bid to a Trump-backed primary challenger, said that under the memorandum, “Iran’s nuclear ambitions were not curbed, and they have learned that threatening the Strait of Hormuz works and will undoubtedly leverage it in the future.”
“Now, Iran gets to build brand-new infrastructure under this deal,” he added.
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who is not seeking re-election, argued the memorandum falls short given the costs of the conflict.
“We’ve lost two F-18s, several other air frames, 13 people have died, several of our Middle East partners have been attacked, 365 people have been injured,” Tillis told MS NOW, adding that the the U.S. had spent “$100 billion has been spent since the first kinetic strike.”
“I need more than 14 [bullet] points,” he said.
He later added that anyone who “is gushing over it being a great plan, I think, have insufficient information. Anybody complaining that it’s a bad plan, have insufficient information.”
According to a senior U.S. official, the memorandum — signed by President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf — outlines a list of commitments as the two sides kick off 60 days of negotiations on a final deal.
In addition to the U.S. ending its naval blockade and the Iranians reopening the Strait of Hormuz, the memorandum calls for the U.S. to take steps to “terminate all types of sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
It calls for the U.S. to work with other Middle East partners to “develop a definitive, mutually agreed plan with at least $300 billion for the reconstruction and economic development of the Islamic Republic of Iran.” And the MOU says that “Iran will maintain the current status quo of its nuclear program, and the United States of America will not impose any new sanctions and will not deploy additional forces in the region.”
In particular, the $300 billion proposal is the source of GOP angst — even from some of the president’s fiercest defenders.
“History teaches that giving billions of dollars to theocratic lunatics who want to murder us is not a good idea,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, told reporters. “I think the president is receiving some very poor advice on this deal.”
His Texas colleague, Republican Sen. John Cornyn, told MS NOW, “I don’t like that part of the deal.”
He noted, “The president has the authority to negotiate,” but he added that Congress should have an “oversight role.”
While some Republicans were outright critical, many others tried a more tactful approach. Many said they were still waiting for more information.
Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., told MS NOW he needed to “see the details” before really commenting on the emerging deal. But when pressed on some of the leaked details, he said the U.S. needed to “tighten the thumb screws if we want to get the sort of concessions required to secure or remove the nuclear material.”
Asked about the $300 billion reconstruction fund for Iran, which is supposed to be paid for by private investments from other countries, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said she was waiting to hear about a “corresponding win” for the U.S.
She said she wanted the Trump administration to present the deal to lawmakers “with an opportunity for us to actually ask those questions.”
And Senate Majority John Thune, R-S.D., who told reporters Wednesday that he still had not seen the final text, said, “There’s a bunch of things in here that I think we’re going to have questions about.”
“I need to hear more about it, and what the ideas are for implementation, and what the enforcement compliance mechanisms are,” he said.
To be sure, only a handful of Republicans directly praised the memorandum. Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio, told MS NOW he was “very happy” with the deal.
“I think it’s historic,” he said.
And Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., told MS NOW he “would think” the memorandum is better than the Iran nuclear deal crafted during the Obama presidency.
But most Republicans approached by MS NOW insisted they had not yet seen the memorandum and therefore wanted to refrain from comment — even when MS NOW pressed about the topline aspects of the plan, like sanctions relief and the potential for $300 billion in assistance.
“Haven’t had a chance to read it yet. I’m sorry,” said Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo.
“I’m not going to comment if I haven’t read it,” said Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah.
“I don’t know what’s in it yet, and that’s critical,” Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, told MS NOW. “I haven’t had a classified briefing yet, and that’s critical.”
But as Republicans learn more details about the agreement, reactions generally haven’t been positive. After spending years blasting the Obama-era Iran nuclear deal — particularly for the agreement sending “pallets of cash” to the Iranian regime — Republicans may have trouble swallowing some of the concessions in this agreement, even if it’s just a temporary deal paving the way to a larger pact in 60 days.
As Democrats have been pointing out, it will be practically more difficult for Trump to walk away from negotiations in August, with the pressure of midterms increasing and the prospect of higher gas prices more daunting.
In general, Democrats have cast the memorandum as an “abject failure,” though they’ve couched that disappointment with an insistence that they’re happy about a potential end to hostilities.
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., who in recent months has spearheaded a Democratic effort to curtail the president’s war powers in Iran, said it sounded like “we’re giving a lot more to get a lot less than we got in the JCPOA” — a reference to the Obama-era deal, which was formally named the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., told MS NOW that “by virtually every goal that President Trump announced when this war began” — from regime change to cutting off Iran’s support for its proxies in the region to collecting the country’s nuclear material — “he’s failed.”
In particular, Coons took issue with the proposed sanction relief and the $300 billion for reconstruction, likening it to “rivers of cash to help the mullahs not just rebuild Iran but to build a stronger Iran.”
“I hope — but do not expect — to hear from my many colleagues who denounced the JCPOA as funneling ‘pallets of cash’ to Iran to similarly denounce this deal,” Coons said.
Trump has left himself some latitude on the deal — at least on the potential blame for a bad agreement.
On Wednesday, as he faced questions in France over the pending MOU, he explained why he continued to present Vance as a key negotiator of the deal.
“This way, if it works out, I’m going to take the credit,” Trump said. “If it doesn’t work out, I’m blaming JD.”
Julia Jester, Lillie Boudreaux, and Mychael Schnell contributed to this report.
Kevin Frey is a congressional reporter for MS NOW.
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