The Hosts of 'Morning Joe' Apparently Met With Trump Over Fears About a Specific Investigation

When the news first broke that the hosts of Morning Joe had taken a meeting with Donald Trump, there was some understandable alarm. Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski have both been vocal opponents of Trump, and there was initial reporting that they had taken the meeting in large part because they were scared about the kinds of actions Trump and his administration might take against them in a second term.

Now, new reporting suggests that the hosts may have been concerned about one incident, in particular. Here's what we know about their concerns around an intern investigation, and how they might have played into their decision to meet with Trump.

According to a report in Puck News, the hosts told those around them that they were concerned about the retribution Trump might enact because of how critical they have been of him over the years. Those fears grew after Matt Gaetz was nominated to be Attorney General (he has now stepped aside), and were specifically focused on a fear that the Trump administration would stew up baseless conspiracy theories related to the death of an intern in Scarborough's office when he was a Congressperson.

Lori Klausutis was a 28-year-old intern in Joe's office in 2001 when she died of complications related to a heart condition. The fear was that Gaetz would use an investigation to place legal pressure on Scarborough, even if the investigation did not turn up any evidence that he had played a role in her death.

The Puck report also suggests that their decision to take the meeting had nothing to do with pressure from Comcast or ratings.

The thinking was that meeting face-to-face with the president-elect might lessen his desire to enact revenge against them.

In an interview on Fox News, Trump said that the meeting was "very cordial," per Mediaite.

“Many things were discussed, and I very much appreciated the fact that they wanted to have open communication,” he said. “The meeting ended in a very positive manner, and we agreed to speak in the future."

After the hosts made the announcement that they had met with Trump, their ratings dropped 17 percent for the following hour, and their ratings the next day were down 38 percent, suggesting that viewers were not happy about the news that they had met with the former and future president.

After they announced the move, they explained the move in journalistic terms, suggesting that it would be foolish not to meet with such a powerful figure.

“For those asking why we would go speak to the president-elect during such fraught times, especially between us, I guess I would ask back, ‘Why wouldn’t we?’” Mika said. “Joe and I realized it’s time to do something different, and that starts with not only talking about Donald Trump but also talking with him."