MSNBC’s Morning Joe opened Thursday with a five-minute tirade from host Joe Scarborough, who erupted over House Speaker Mike Johnson’s response to a tearful Republican voter’s plea about the government shutdown.
The segment featured a viral C-SPAN clip showing Johnson taking a live call from “Samantha,” a mother and military spouse from Fort Belvoir, Virginia. She described living “paycheck-to-paycheck” while caring for “two medically fragile children” and a husband with PTSD after two tours of duty.
She warned Johnson that her family could miss a paycheck due Oct. 15 because of the ongoing shutdown. The Louisiana Republican offered sympathy but shifted blame to Senate Democrats, saying he was “so angry” that “military families are being put in this position.”
Johnson, and Trump, have repeatedly blamed the Democrats for the shutdown. Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Scarborough cut in before the clip ended, blasting Johnson for what he called “effortless lying.”
“A guy who says that he’s going to rule by the Bible? It’s really surprising. He lies so effortlessly,” Scarborough said. “That poor caller, who’s a Republican, who is only asking that our men and women in uniform get paid… while the speaker is getting paid.”
Scarborough accused Johnson of omitting key facts.
“Democrats have a plan to make sure the military is paid,” he said. “Republicans are blocking it. Don’t believe me? Ask Elise Stefanik, who’s also putting a bill on the floor to stop Mike Johnson from blocking payments to the military.”
Republicans have pointed the finger at Chuck Schumer for causing the shutdown. Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Imag
Stefanik is leading a push for a standalone military pay bill during the shutdown. She has publicly called for a floor vote on what’s being called the Pay Our Troops Act, in contrast to House leadership, including Johnson, who have resisted bringing such a measure to the floor.
The MSNBC host claimed Johnson could “pick up the phone right now” and call Stefanik to hold a vote that “would pass today.”
Scarborough then connected the standoff to Johnson’s handling of another controversy, claiming the speaker “shut down Congress” to avoid releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files.
“Mike Johnson won’t swear in a democratically elected congresswoman because that will be the deciding vote on a discharge petition to have the Epstein files released,” Scarborough said. “He won’t do it. And now he’s claiming he can’t do anything to have the military be paid.”
That comment references the controversy around Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva and Johnson’s refusal—or delay—to swear her into the House. Grijalva won a special election, and supporters argue that once sworn in, she would be the final signature needed for a discharge petition to force a vote on releasing the Jeffrey Epstein files. Johnson has denied that politics is at play.
Scarborough, meanwhile, ended his rant by warning Republicans that the optics are bad.
“You’re getting paid… but you’re not working,” he said. “Meanwhile, I’m on a military base and can’t support my family. That’s not a winning formula.”
Johnson’s media team has been contacted for comment.