Not every Trump critic was on board with the “lock him up” chants and boos directed toward President Trump during his appearance at game 5 of the World Series in Washington, D.C. Sunday night.
During a Monday morning segment, “Morning Joe” hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski took issue with the “lock him up chants,” calling them “un-American.”
“I would speak to the lock him up chants. Again, it is un-American. And it started with Donald Trump,” Scarborough said. “In fact, he’s made it a centerpiece of his campaign rallies.”
Piggybacking off of Scarborough’s comments, Brzezinski added that both of them find the chants to be “sickening” when they’re directed at Hillary Clinton at Trump rallies. Scarborough then elaborated on Brzezinski’s point.
“Sickening, we are Americans. And we do not do that,” Scarborough said. “We do not want the world hearing us chant, ‘lock him up,’ to this President, or to any President, that’s what I’m saying. Let’s hope, as we move forward, maybe this is one less fascist tactic he and his supporters use, during chants. You are going to actually imprison your political opponents. So let’s leave that behind.”
Watch the “Morning Joe” segment below:
"Morning Joe" condemns "lock him up" chants at World Series pic.twitter.com/7zk131IwNd
— Talking Points Memo (@TPM) October 28, 2019
Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) shared a similar sentiment during a Monday morning interview on CNN’s “New Day,” saying that he’s “enough of a traditionalist” to be bothered by the “lock him up” chant.
“I’m enough of a traditionalist about our institutions that even at a time when there is a lot that our President does that I find disturbing, offensive, unconventional, I have a hard time with a crowd on a globally-televised sporting event chanting “Lock Him Up!” about our President,” Coons said. “I frankly think the office of the President deserves respect even when the actions of our President, at times, don’t.”
Coons then echoed the “Morning Joe” hosts’ argument that adopting the chant that was popularized during Trump’s 2016 campaign wouldn’t work to anyone’s advantage.
“I certainly hope that we won’t hear “Lock Him Up! chants at Democratic rallies or at our convention,” Coons said. “I think that’s one of the most regrettable, even at times despicable, actions by candidate Trump when he was running for president in 2016. It reminds me of things that happen where the rule of law is unknown or unestablished. Whipping up public furor on both sides I don’t think it is constructive or helpful.”
Watch Coon’s reaction on CNN below:
Coons condemns "lock him up" chant at World Series pic.twitter.com/1uYMJBh9Kn
— TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) October 28, 2019
