'At his behest': MSNBC's Lemire warns Trump's already issued orders for vow he now denies
On MSNBC's "Morning Joe" Monday, co-host Jonathan Lemire was more than a little skeptical of Donald Trump's claim in an NBC interview that he will not use the Department of Justice to pursue his political enemies.
Speaking with NBC's Kristen Welker, the president-elect was pressed, "You wrote on Truth Social in 2023 that you’re going to appoint a real special prosecutor to go after Joe Biden. Now you’re saying you’re not going to do that."
"I will say this, no, I’m not doing that unless I find something that I think is reasonable, but that’s not going to be my decision," he replied. "That’s going to be [attorney general nominee] Pam Bondi’s decision, and, to a different extent, [FBI director nominee] Kash Patel, assuming they’re both there, and I think they’re both going to get approved. But I — I — you know, while you ask me that, what they’ve done to me with weaponization is a disgrace."
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According to Lemire, Trump is playing games and indulging in "plausible deniability."
"This idea, he said, I would not direct people under me to carry out these arrests or target my political opponents," Lemire told the panel. "That's giving him some plausible deniability."
"Maybe he won't come January 21st, say 'Hey, arrest Liz Cheney,' he's already directed it," he explained. "He has said these names over and over and over for months. They already can take their cues; That would be at his behest were this to happen."
"Perhaps," co-host Mika Brzezinski replied, "We will have to see how these choices pan out as well and whether some of them get through or not, or how they are put in place."
"Also, Donald Trump has a decision to make for himself, what will be more important for him on day one? Meetings with leaders, Democrats and Republicans, working on policy and legislative action, perhaps getting things done, meeting goals or starting this way, which would make it very hard for any of those other things," she added.
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