The Democratic Party has found itself in the midst of an internal rift just as the midterms are looming. Between revolutionary democratic socialists and establishment liberals, even the media has struggled to pick sides in the battle for the heart of the party. MS NOW’s Joe Scarborough, however, seems to have settled on a choice. On Monday’s Morning Joe, he urged the establishment to let the socialists waltz right on in.
Beginning the segment, Scarborough couldn’t seem to understand why party officials might not want to let socialists and communists into their party. Why can’t we all just get along?
I don't understand it: this is a time Democrats should be coming together, and yet, every opinion piece I see, every social media post, it's like about a division in the Democratic party that doesn't even have to be.
Scarborough’s response to the party divide? Just welcome the socialists with open arms! And pretend they are the ones who will convert to the establishment.
I will say, as a former Republican, now an independent, who is for pro-democracy forces, my attitude has always been, we're Baptists. We will play 16 hymns of ‘Just as I Am’, if that's what it takes to bring new converts down. We will wait. And when those new converts come in, we hug them.
Socialists are taking over the Democratic party. Joe Scarborough's response? Open the gates, let them in! Apparently, Scarborough has taken a lesson from Odysseus' trickery - surround your attack in an appealing shell to conceal the danger within. pic.twitter.com/1KugZ4iHjm
— James Waterman (@jwatermaniv) July 20, 2026
For someone who claims to be an independent, Scarborough had a more enthusiastic view of the socialist wing of the Democratic party than the Democrats themselves. This is because Scarborough isn’t the moderate independent he disguises himself as. His policies and stances tie him closer to the sort of independent Bernie Sanders is, frequently punching to the left of the establishment party.
In between his calls for acceptance of the socialist radicals within the Democratic party, Scarborough invited Democrat political organizer Ben Wilker to discuss the current state of American politics. Specifically, they discussed how Wilker “saved” Wisconsin from being “dominated by the far-right”:
WILKER: It's going to take thousands of people rolling up their sleeves and doing the work. That's what we did in my state in Wisconsin, which was more rigged and more dominated by the far-right than the U.S. Government is today. And if we could do it in Wisconsin over this last decade and a half, we can do it more quickly nationwide now. That's what I want to help people do.
SCARBOROUGH: Yeah, I completely agree with you about Wisconsin. It was an absolute wreck. It was rigged. The voters had no say in the makeup of the state legislature, usually, because it was just radically, radically shifted and rigged to help Republicans.
Whenever Democrats are not in control, the system is "rigged." They appeared to be referring to Wisconsin’s “gerrymandered” congressional map, though, in that case, Wilker and Scarborough’s accusations are unfounded. Far from having “no say in the makeup of the state legislature,” Wisconsin reliably elected mostly even numbers of Republican and Democratic representatives, just following a reliably right-shifting trend since the 70s.
Scarborough has little ground to stand on when criticizing gerrymandering anyways. Back when the Virginia Democratic party was planning an actual gerrymandered map for their state, he laughed off Republican concerns about the map.
The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read.
MS NOW’s Morning Joe
July 20, 2026
08:46:55 a.m. Eastern
JOE SCARBOROUGH: Welcome back to Morning Joe. As we approach November's midterm elections, our next guest is offering hope and practical advice for anyone currently worried about the Trump administration. It comes in the form of a new book titled This is a Plan: How to End America's Meltdown and Save Democracy, and it maps out comprehensive ways to dictator-proof the U.S. Government, defeat MAGA at every level of the ballot box and build a future of democracy, opportunity, and freedom for all.
And with us now, the author of the book, political organizer and strategist Ben Wikler. He previously served as a chairman of the Democratic party of Wisconsin. What great timing for this book, the fear and the loathing, the weeping, the gnashing of teeth, the sackcloth and ashes. I must tell you, as a former Republican surrounded by my Democratic friends, I don't understand it: this is a time Democrats should be coming together, and yet, every opinion piece I see, every social media post, it's like about a division in the Democratic party that doesn't even have to be.
BEN WILKER: It's true. The reality of this moment is that we are a nation in profound crisis. But also there's a very clear path out of this mess, to get to a better place than we've ever been. It's going to take thousands of people rolling up their sleeves and doing the work. That's what we did in my state in Wisconsin, which was more rigged and more dominated by the far-right than the U.S. Government is today. And if we could do it in Wisconsin over this last decade and a half, we can do it more quickly nationwide now. That's what I want to help people do.
SCARBOROUGH: Yeah, I completely agree with you about Wisconsin. It was an absolute wreck. It was rigged. The voters had no say in the makeup of the state legislature, usually, because it was just radically, radically shifted and rigged to help Republicans.
Now, let's talk though, about this moment. And again, I will say, as a former Republican, now an independent, who is for pro-democracy forces, my attitude has always been, we're Baptists. We will play 16 hymns of ‘Just as I Am’, if that's what it takes to bring new converts down. We will wait. And when those new converts come in, we hug them.
And I will say, when I look at Progressives who I will say were very patient throughout the Biden administration, I saw people that knocked on doors. I saw people that made phone calls. I saw people that did all of these things that more moderate Democrats might not be as lined up to do.
(...)
