Scarborough, Hunt laud Romney for joining protesters: ‘Such a turning point’ for GOP support of Trump

MSNBC “Morning Joe” co-host Joe Scarborough and NBC News Capitol Hill Correspondent Kasie Hunt lauded Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) for joining protesters marching over the police killing of George Floyd, with Hunt calling it a “turning point” in Republican support for President Trump.

“These questions of character have been sort of shunted to the side in the Trump era,” Hunt argued during an appearance Monday morning. “I think that this really represents … such a turning point. And, you know, perhaps it caught a lot of Americans by surprise on the depth and strength and seeming durability of the moment we’re in right now.”

“But all of our society, the businesses who are often more of the conservative actors, are embracing this movement. So I think this is a challenge for all of those Republicans,” she continued. “As you point out, you know, if they miss this moment, I think there’s a very real chance, and this is starting to become a more real conversation behind the scenes, that they lose the Senate come November and that, of course, would be a seismic shift in power.”

“Sen. Romney has been a good friend for a long time,” Scarborough, a former GOP congressman, added. “And even through the 2012 campaign where they didn’t appreciate it, I know, when I could be tough on their campaign once in a while. But we’ve remained good friends.”

“It is interesting that I’ve always said he was extraordinarily cautious and told him at times and told those closest to him at times that he was extraordinarily cautious whenever he had his sort of political uniform on,” Scarborough said. “Well, that caution is being thrown to the wind and at an extraordinarily important time in this nation’s history.”

Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, marched with protesters in Washington, D.C., on Sunday.

“We need a voice against racism. We need many voices against racism and against brutality. And we need to stand up and say ‘black lives matter,'” he told an NBC reporter.

Trump early Monday also weighed in on video showing Romney marching with protesters.

“Tremendous sincerity, what a guy. Hard to believe, with this kind of political talent, his numbers would “tank” so badly in Utah!” the president tweeted.

Scarborough and Trump were also on friendly terms back in the primary stage of the 2016 presidential campaign, with Scarborough regularly doling out advice to the rookie politician.

“I’ve actually called him up and said, ‘Donald, listen, you need to speak in complete sentences at debates,’ ” Scarborough said in February 2016. “After the second debate … I walked into his office, I said, ‘Donald, do you know how to read?’ … I said, ‘You should read before a debate! … Read a paragraph on Syria, read a paragraph on education reform!'”

Trump and Scarborough had a falling out shortly after the former NBC “Apprentice” star captured the GOP nomination in May 2016. Trump has not appeared on “Morning Joe” or MSNBC since that time.