Morning Joe hosts drop Trump charm offensive and have on-screen meltdown over his first acts in office

Morning Joe descended into a bitter battle on Tuesday over Donald Trump's pardon of the January 6 rioters.

Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski quickly turned to marketing expert Donny Deutsch for claiming that non-MAGA Americans supported the dramatic move.

Deutsch also argued that the president's landslide election victory in November meant he had “co-opted the heartbeat of America.”

An irate Brzezinski came at him and the show quickly turned into a shouting match, with the married hosts insisting that Trump is “breaking one norm after another.”

Since he first ran for office in 2016, the couple had repeatedly criticized the president, labeling him a danger to democracy.

But they were torn by liberals for flying to Mar-a-Lago for a friendly meeting with him after the election, even as their coverage dwindled in recent weeks.

Still, the ceasefire appeared to end Tuesday after Trump's inauguration and his signing of a series of executive orders, including the Jan. 6 pardon.

In the “Way Too Early” segment, host Ali Vitali brought up the pardon and Trump made good on his word, telling viewers, “Support him or not… that's the way it is now.”

The set of Morning Joe erupted into an argument on Tuesday after a guest commented on US support for Donald Trump and his January 6 series of pardons

The conversation came shortly after Trump, in one of his first acts as president, pardoned about 1,500 people involved in the January 6, 2021 riots.

Scarborough quickly intervened, claiming the election was close – “1.5 per cent,” he said.

Deutsch jumped in and said, “I just want to add one more thing. We can say this to ourselves: [but Trump] has co-opted the heartbeat of America.”

The claim — made in reference to Trump's Jan. 6 executive order pardoning about 1,500 defendants — visibly infuriated Brzezinski.

She said: “If America's heartbeat is hostage families rallying behind it, then that marketing image is quite something.”

Her comment appeared to refer to Trump's position toward Israeli relatives of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza during a post-inauguration rally Monday in Washington.

Deutsch said, “I'm not saying you might not like that. Listen to me…' before she cut him off and said, 'I'm talking about [January 6]'.

Deutsch continued, “People will absorb it because he gives them what they want in other places.”

On the first Way To Early after Trump's swearing-in, host Ali Vitali paved the way for a back-and-forth conversation that offered a glimpse into the couple's political stance. Vitali brought up the pardon and Trump made good on his word, prompting Scarborough to note that the election had been close.

At this point, Donny Deutsch, a marketing expert who has hosted shows on both MSNBC and CNN, intervened, sparking a discussion. “I just want to add one thing to that,” he told Scarborough. 'We can say that to ourselves, [but Trump] has co-opted the heartbeat of America'

The claim – made in reference to the wave of pardons – infuriated both anchors

Yelling at this point, he added that he wanted “the Democrats to learn that you can get away with even such ridiculous things if you give people what they want to hear.”

“Yes,” Brzezinski agreed, at that moment accepting the olive branch from the former MSNBC anchor.

But her husband Scarborough didn't seem so willing. Speaking about Trump's promises to pardon those who took part in the riots, he said: 'Well, he actually told them.

'I told them again. He told them what he was going to do.” “He did,” Brzezinski noted approvingly at this point.

Families of hostages held in Gaza greet President Donald Trump as they arrive for an indoor presidential inauguration parade on Monday. Brzezinski brought up the exhibit on Tuesday, seemingly suggesting it was for show

Scarborough continued, condescendingly from the Conservatives' perspective: 'And he provides the bread and the circuses, as they said in Roman times.

He said, 'That entertains them. But underneath that there are things where he breaks one norm after another.” Brzezinski added, “You can't ignore it.”

Deutsch responded: “No one is saying ignore it, I'm actually saying the opposite.” Scarborough added: “After he promised he would break every norm.”

In addition to granting pardons on January 6 in front of TV cameras, Trump commuted the sentences of eight others on Tuesday.

He previously said that “forgiving the January 6 insurgents” was “the most important priority on that list” – a promise Vitali pointed out was made “with the stroke of a pen.”

Last month, new bosses at the media company that oversees MSNBC began making clear they want more Republican votes on the left-wing network.

It came weeks after the CEO reportedly cut Rachel Maddow's pay by about $5 million after she agreed to stay with the network for another five years.