MSNBC's Morning Joe busts Trump team's 'Orwellian' lies: 'This is how totalitarian leaders work'

MSNBC's Joe Scarborough denounced the "Orwellian" lies told by President Donald Trump and his top officials as "the work of dictators."

The "Morning Joe" host ran down obvious lies publicly told this week alone by Vice President Mike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Attorney General William Barr, and said their behavior was an ominous sign.

"They're just bad liars," he said. "William Barr lied, he got caught lying to (Sen.) Charlie Crist, he committed a crime in front of the entire nation and now he's claiming he didn't do so."

"Mike Pence lied to the American people, said that Donald Trump was the greatest protector of religious freedoms ever," Scarborough added. "That's a lie as hostile towards people of faith than Donald Trump, given what he said in December of 2015."

Scarborough said the secretary of state lied on Fox News, which deceptively edited hypothetical comments made by Hillary Clinton about China hacking Trump's tax records.

"Oh my god, first of all, of course, they chopped up Hillary Clinton's interview and made it seem like that's what she was proposing when all she was doing was saying this is what Donald Trump did," Scarborough said. "What would Republicans think if we did this. But then Pompeo lies to the American people clearly, knowing that he's lying, everybody knowing."

"How do we sort through all of this?" he added. "Three of the most powerful people in the United States of America are liars, have lied to the American people and they know that the American people know that they're lying?"

The situation was clearly alarming, and echoed the warnings against totalitarianism by author George Orwell.

"We've had the word Orwellian thrown around a lot through the years, but it is Orwellian," Scarborough said. "It is the work of dictators to lie openly to their people when their people know that they're lying and they're trying to lie enough that the lie becomes truth."

"You look at Pompeo -- he knew he was lying, the person listening to him knew he was lying, the viewers knew he was lying," Scarborough said, "but he didn't care. He was trying to turn that lie into a truth. Mike Pence knew he was lying, he remembered the Muslim ban, Donald Trump's proposed Muslim ban."

"Just like Barr," he concluded. "Barr lied for the past several days, knew he was lying, he lied to Charlie Crist, he lied to the House, he lied to (Sen. Chris) Van Hollen, he lied to the Senate, committed a crime. They just don't care. I'm not saying they're totalitarian, I'm saying this is how totalitarian leaders work."