Joe Scarborough: 'Here's Mitch McConnell, Doing Vladimir Putin's Work'

By Susie Madrak — June 14, 2019

So Mark Warner tried to make things clear, and here's what happened, as seen on Morning Joe.

"After President Trump declared that he is open to receiving information from foreign countries against his opponents in the 2020 election and that he would only maybe let the FBI know about it, Democratic Senator Mark Warner attempted to pass a bill that makes it illegal for campaigns not to report offers of foreign assistance to the FBI," Mika said.

"But that bill failed to pass by unanimous consent yesterday when Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn rose to object, claiming that the proposal would be too much of a burden on campaigns."

BLACKBURN: These reporting requirements are overbroad. Any person who shares their views with a candidate would be reportable. Campaigns could have to report social media responses, our interactions, you would report every non-U.S. citizen or Dreamer who volunteers for their campaign or knocks on doors or even knocks on the door of a foreign national.

Sen. Warner responded:

WARNER: I would point out that her reading of my legislation is not accurate. The only thing that would have to be reported is if an agent of a foreign government or foreign national offered something that was already prohibited and, candidly, and I will take my colleague at her word, if there are ways to improve on this legislation, I'm wide open for business.

"Wow. But Senate Republicans have so far chosen not to work on the issue. Majority leader Mitch McConnell has blocked bipartisan election security legislation passed through the house in March, a position he reaffirmed last night."

McCONNELL: I'm open to considering legislation, to be directed in a way that doesn't undermine state and local control of elections. The Democrat law would like to nationalize everything. They want the federal government to take over broad swaths of the election process because they think that would somehow benefit them.

"John Heilemann, how rich that? Mitch McConnell is saying that Democrats want to take over broad swaths of elections when all we're doing is trying to stop Russians. All we're doing, those of us in the media that are asking for this, those on Capitol Hill that are asking for this, are just trying to stop Vladimir Putin or China or Iran or Turkey or any of our other adversaries at times, we're trying to stop them. Isn't it fascinating the circle is actually -- has been completed now and here we end up with Mitch McConnell sending Marsha Blackburn on the floor for what we should call the Vladimir Putin relief bloc," Scarborough said.

"This is the same Mitch McConnell who in 2016 actually was warned about Russian interference, about Vladimir Putin's interference in American democracy. That's what Donald Trump's intel people would say a year and a half later that, yes, yes, they interfered with American democracy. While this was happening in 2016 it was who? Mitch McConnell who said no, you can't go out and say that or else I'm going to attack you as being partisan.

"So here we are. Mitch McConnell, still doing Vladimir Putin's work."

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