GOP losses 'only strengthen Donald Trump's hand' over Senate leadership: Morning Joe

MSNBC's Joe Scarborough said a string of Republican losses in swing state races could give him leverage in the battle to replace Mitch McConnell as GOP leader.

Some of the president-elect's advisers believe he should block Sen. John Thune (R-SD), who is disliked in MAGA circles, in a leadership struggle against Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), and the "Morning Joe" host said GOP losses in some of the states Trump won should allow him to influence that race.

"No doubt about it, and you look at Arizona, it is fascinating – like seven-point swing between Donald Trump' five-point victory and Ruben Gallego, right now, two-point victory," Scarborough said. "You're right. So much it has to do with the candidate. He's the first Hispanic senator in the state of Arizona, he's a veteran. Hispanic men voted for him in much higher numbers than they voted for Kamala Harris, so a lot of different things going."

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"If you're Donald Trump this morning and you're seeing this news, this just seems to strengthen your hand with Republicans in the organizing caucus going, 'Listen, you guys can't win these [men] and women, you can't win these swing states,'" Scarborough added. "'You lost in Michigan, you lost in Wisconsin, you lost in North Carolina, [the] gubernatorial race. You lost in Arizona, you lost in Nevada – I won all of those states.' It seems to me as he organizes Republicans and he starts saying this is who you should pick as your majority leader and this is what you should do in the House, it seems to me it only strengthens Donald Trump's hand."

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