May 28, 2016

Regarding Marco Rubio's pathetic flip-flop on Trump: Joy Reid opens her conversation with Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles' Alfonso Aguilar by reminding him that "principles" is in the title of his organization. Is it principled to call Donald Trump a con-artist one day and endorse him the next?

Aguilar admits that "politics is a messy business" and this season in particular is "bizarre." Then he finds a way to 'support' Trump by claiming that Hillary Clinton would be a worse president. "The one thing that unites conservatives is, we don't want to see Hillary Clinton in the White House."

Aguilar is at a real disadvantage here. His organization requires him to denounce Trump's rhetoric and at the same time avoid helping any Democrat get elected. He has said in the primary process that he will not support Trump and not campaign for him. But he can't say the Republican nominee would be a disaster for the nation. Even though he knows that is true.

So he jumps on a magic unicorn that makes Trump a completely different candidate than he is.

I would say that if Mr. Trump would change his tone, and perhaps open himself to some form to legalization, that would open the door, for some of us to support him.

Joy Reid calls that pony out for what it is. "What makes you think that he would do that?"

Aguilar jumps in the hole he dug for himself: "How many times has Donald Trump changed positions?"

Oh, that makes it all better.

Reid then makes it really simple. Rubio and other Republicans have said in the past that Donald Trump is "dangerous" and should not be trusted with the FBI and nuclear codes. Those Republicans who are now flip flopping to that dangerous candidate for partisan reasons are not facing the reality of the danger they pointed out earlier.

Aguilar then says "But Hillary Clinton is dangerous."

This is where an average cable news host would go to commercial. But Joy Reid listened to her guest rather than to her need to fill airtime. "How is she dangerous?"

It is amazing to watch how unprepared Aguilar is for this question. Reid is breaking the rules of cable news here: you're supposed to let your Republican guests BS their partisan nonsense and then change the subject.

Aguilar sputters "well, she's a Clinton!" No, really, he said that.

Then he word salads some stuff about the economy and pro-life and blah blah.

"So she's a standard-issue Democrat.... You're saying a standard-issue Democrat is more dangerous than a candidate...who you can't trust on our national security. Are those even equivalent?"

Aguilar must say yes they are.

And then he brings up....emails. Because he has nothing left.

"Hillary is equally dangerous because she had a private email server? Okay I'm going to move on because my mind is blown."

Exactly, Joy. Exactly.

I wish everyone who works on-air for Cable News would watch this clip and learn from Joy-Ann Reid how to conduct an interview. She doesn't lose her cool, raise her voice, or get nasty. But she does hold her guest accountable for what they JUST said to her.

It's such a change from the no-follow-ups "fill the segment with whatever and then cut to commercial" nonsense we get from most interviews, that lets conservatives come on a show and lie with no consequences. Conservative guests on cable news know exactly how this game is played, and they say things that are patently false because "we'll be back after this break" is much more important than "wait, what did you say?" to the producers and bosses of cable networks.

This is particularly true as Republicans who know better than to endorse Donald Trump's policies or lack thereof, nevertheless find a way to bend over and speak in favor of him for the sake of their party and cushy job lying on television.

DO NOT MISS the last 30 seconds of this clip. Joy Reid asks a simple question and Aguilar sputters for his entire answer.

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