During Wednesday edition of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe, host Joe Scarborough said that Donald Trump might be feeling quite uneasy after witnessing JD Vance’s performance during the vice presidential debate. According to Scarborough, Vance’s ability to engage effectively with his opponent, Tim Walz, highlighted a stark contrast to Trump’s disastrous debate against Vice President Kamala Harris.
Entering the debate with historically low favorability ratings, JD Vance surprised many, including Joe Scarborough, who remarked that Vance looked significantly younger and more capable than Trump. Scarborough predicted that this would lead to “consternation in Mar-a-Lago,” as Trump may feel overshadowed by his running mate’s performance.
“He showed a side of himself that we haven’t seen before—he tried to be more likable and agreeable,” Scarborough added, indicating that Vance’s strategy might be an attempt to distance himself from Trump’s polarizing style.
“The people who knew him before he decided to be a Trumper said he was a nice guy, a charming guy, and he tried to show more of that last night because it’s almost as if he got a sense that this election may end and he doesn’t want to completely tie himself to Donald Trump. He’s 40 years old, he has a future,” Scarborough added. “While Trump likes going to war nonstop against everybody, you got to say J.D. Vance decided, ‘You know what? I’m going to try to salvage my political career, even if Donald Trump goes up in flames.’”
“No doubt this morning, there’s going to be be consternation in Mar-a-Lago because everybody is saying J.D. Vance should talk to the rest of the campaign and Donald Trump should shut up,” Scarborough added, “because J.D. Vance is so much better at this than Donald Trump. It’s not even a close call.”
However, Scarborough also pointed out the notable shift in favorability ratings post-debate.
When I saw the CNN poll that came out last night, it showed that ‘Midwestern nice’ really worked for Walz. Tim Walz’s favorability jumped up 15 points, has a 59 percent favorability rating after the debate, a 22 percent favorability before the debate. I don’t care where are you, you have to look at the numbers.”
“There’s something viewers liked, that undecided voters and registered voters liked, about Tim Walz,” he said.
Donny Deutsch, another MSNBC contributor, echoed Scarborough’s sentiments, predicting that Trump would be bothered by the buzz surrounding Vance’s performance.
“This morning in Mar-a-Lago, what’s going on is people are going up, as they’re getting their Danish and Bundt cake at Mar-a-Lago, saying, ‘Vance was great last night, wasn’t Vance great?,’ “Deutsch noted, suggesting that such praise would trouble Trump. “He’s going to be very dismissive of J.D. Vance in the coming weeks, but Donald Trump is not happy with himself because J.D. Vance showed himself to be a better candidate.”
Watch the segment below:
