Joe Scarborough spells out exactly why Republicans forced yesterday's Wisconsin primary and rips them as "reckless and irresponsible."
"What a clown. That actually is the Republican speaker of the Wisconsin state assembly in full-on protective gear. This guy who looks like he's in a hazmat suit telling Wisconsin voters that they were, quote, incredibly safe to go out. what an absolute clown. Mika, of all the things -- " Scarborough said.
"That went on yesterday?"
"No! That I've seen in my 25 years of politics and being associated with politics and reporting on politics, I don't know that I've ever seen anything as reckless and irresponsible with public health as what I saw yesterday, where Republicans -- Republicans jammed down the throat of Wisconsin voters an election, in the middle of a pandemic, where they had to stand in lines close to each other. And yes, you can say this, the Republicans that jammed this election through risked the lives of countless Wisconsin voters and those in other states.
"This is, after all, Mika, if you want to know what this is about, as we look at these pictures, this is about a Wisconsin legislature and a Wisconsin Republican party in Wisconsin that has spent the last decade doing everything they could do to twist and distort voting outcomes in elections. You don't believe me? In 2018, I have the numbers here, Democratic candidates won by more than 190,000 votes for the state assembly, right? Pretty much a landslide.
"Yet the GOP has so gerrymandered and twisted up the state that, despite the fact Democrats won by 190,000 more votes than Republicans, the GOP held a 64 to 35 advantage in that chamber. Wisconsin -- it's just been an ongoing effort, Willie, by Wisconsin Republicans to make sure that black voters, to make sure Hispanic voters, to make sure that Democratic voters don't get their say. And that it's not one person, one vote.
"And yesterday was the most extraordinarily reckless thing that I've seen in my political life. In the middle of a pandemic, just not waiting until June like every other state. Because you know what? They had a Supreme Court seat that they wanted to win. They wanted the Democrats to stay at home, they wanted to win the Supreme Court seat so they could pass more legislation which would disenfranchise more black voters.
"It was a total travesty. And you were looking at those pictures of people standing outside. And you just say to yourself, why? Why?" Willie Geist said.
"Every other state that had a primary in the month of April either moved it to June or went to full mail-in voting. Milwaukee, guys, had previously 180 polling places. Milwaukee, the biggest city in Wisconsin. Five yesterday. Five polling places. So not only was everyone being asked to go out and vote in the middle of a pandemic, but they were also being asked to stand in line, very close to other people, for hours and hours and hours to vote.
"They were given the choice and God bless those voters who wanted to exercise their right, they were given the choice. Either lose your vote, stay home, or go outside and vote in a pandemic. And you just ask again why. Why not just move it to June?"
