MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” hosts cackled Wednesday over the Trump campaign’s assertion that President Joe Biden will be “jacked up” during Thursday’s first 2024 presidential debate.
Biden vanished from the public eye one week before the debate to prepare with several of his White House and campaign aides at Camp David. Presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump told an audience of supporters in Philadelphia on Saturday that Biden will receive “a shot in the ass” to “strengthen him up” ahead of the executive showdown.
WATCH: Trump says Biden is going to get a “shot in the ass to strengthen him up” before the TV debate, adding: “I say he’ll come out all jacked up!” pic.twitter.com/gDrLdhb3zi
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MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough said it was “so amazing” that Republican Missouri Rep. Eric Burlison — rather than “some guy they picked up off the street” — suggested Biden would be “jacked up on Mountain Dew” during the debate.
“I’m sitting there halfway through going, ‘Who is this guy?’ He is an elected member of Congress who is on the House Oversight Committee,” Scarborough said.
Trump said in May that he would demand Biden take a drug test before the CNN debate. This comes months after Biden delivered an uncharacteristically energetic State Of The Union (SOTU) address on March 7, which spawned widespread speculation among Republicans that the president took something to liven up his performance.
Scarborough and “Morning Joe” co-host Mike Brzezinski took turns praising Biden before Scarborough suggested Trump lacks confidence ahead of the debate. (RELATED: Trump Sends ‘Morning Joe’ Host Spiraling Over ‘Fort Al Sharpton’ Remark)
“This shows how nervous they are. This is not how somebody who’s confident acts. I’ve never heard Larry Bird talking about, ‘Hey, you know, Magic Johnson’s probably gonna be jacked up on Mountain Dew,’” Scarborough exclaimed as MSNBC contributor Willie Geist began to laugh. “‘We’re not gonna be able to beat the Lakers because—’No! Like Trump is, I can’t believe I’m saying this. Trump is scared out of his mind!”
Trump told “The All-In Podcast” last week that he does not “want to underestimate” Biden because the Democratic incumbent “destroy Paul Ryan” during the 2012 vice presidential debate.
“I don’t know, you tell me. Why are they running so scared from Joe Biden? The guy who they’ve spent the last eight years saying is out of his mind,” Scarborough asked.
“First of all, I love a Mountain Dew. Have for a very long time. It’s a safe and legal way to keep yourself jacked up if you’re studying for a test at college or something like that. It’s fantastic,” Geist told Scarborough. “It really is remarkable that this is the entire argument.”
“Way Too Early” host Jonathan Lemire chimed in with a joke about Mountain Dew after Geist finished his remarks.
“First of all, I’m rethinking this morning’s beverage choice here. If this was Mountain Dew, think about what I could do,” Lemire said.
“Do the Dew,” Geist said to the laughter of Brzezinski.
“Let’s switch that for tomorrow,” Lemire responded.
Trump and Biden will face off Thursday in a 90-minute debate moderated by CNN’s Dana Bash and Jake Tapper. Breaking tradition, microphones will be muted and there will be no live studio audience.
