Alex Pappas
Sources close to MSNBC host Joe Scarborough think he is seriously considering the prospect of leaving morning television to run for president in 2016.
Last week, Scarborough was all smiles — even letting out a laugh — on “Morning Joe” when Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol suggested on the air that Scarborough could represent the “Jon Huntsman lane” in a 2016 GOP primary. (RELATED: Kristol to Scarborough: You’ll run in 2016 to ‘fill the Jon Huntsman lane’)
But behind the scenes, those who know Scarborough are not laughing.
It’s widely believed at MSNBC — including among network brass — that Scarborough is actively mulling a presidential bid, sources said.
Meanwhile, some of Scarborough’s guests are beginning to talk him up as a possible candidate. Mark McKinnon — the former adviser to George W. Bush and John McCain who co-founded the group No Labels and appears on Morning Joe regularly — said he has talked about the prospect of a White House campaign with Scarborough “ever since we first met years ago, but always in the abstract.”
“On paper, he’s a great candidate,” McKinnon told The Daily Caller. “He has the kind of confidence, ideas and media savvy required to make it on the big stage. And he’d be a lot of fun to watch because he wouldn’t be afraid to mix it up with anybody on any topic. I think it would be highly entertaining and good for the party.”
Added McKinnon: “I think Joe looks at the potential field and thinks, ‘I could compete.’ And I think there are potential donors and supporters who think the same thing.”
Another Scarborough friend — a Republican who has appeared as a guest on Morning Joe many times — said the notion of a 2016 campaign is no joke: “I definitely wouldn’t fall in the laughing category.”
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http://dailycaller.com/2014/02/10/joe-scarborough-believed-to-be-taking-idea-of-2016-presidential-bid-seriously/#ixzz2swZJoRd9