Joe Scarborough

Joe Scarborough
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Name	Joe Scarborough
Caption	Scarborough in 2014
Birth name	Charles Joseph Scarborough
Birth date	9 April 1963
Birth place	Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Education	University of Alabama (BA), University of Florida (JD)
Occupation	Television host, political commentator, former politician
Spouse	Melanie Hinton (m. 1997; div. 2013), Mika Brzezinski (m. 2018)
Party	Republican (until 2017), Independent (2017–present)
Office	U.S. Representative from Florida's 1st congressional district
Term start	January 3, 1995
Term end	September 5, 2001
Predecessor	Earl Hutto
Successor	Jeff Miller

Joe Scarborough is an American television host, political commentator, and former politician. He served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from Florida's 1st congressional district from 1995 until his resignation in 2001. Scarborough is best known as the co-host, alongside Mika Brzezinski, of the MSNBC morning talk and news program Morning Joe, which he also co-created. His career transition from Congress to media has made him a prominent and often controversial figure in American political commentary.

Early life and education

Charles Joseph Scarborough was born on April 9, 1963, in Atlanta, Georgia. He was raised in Birmingham, Alabama, and later in Pensacola, Florida, where his family moved during his youth. Scarborough attended Pensacola Catholic High School before enrolling at the University of Alabama. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in history and was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity. Subsequently, Scarborough earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Florida's Fredric G. Levin College of Law in 1990. He was admitted to the Florida Bar and practiced law in Pensacola before entering politics.

Political career

Scarborough began his political career by winning election to the United States House of Representatives in 1994, part of the historic Republican Revolution that gave the GOP control of the Congress for the first time in decades. Representing Florida's 1st congressional district, a conservative stronghold in the Florida Panhandle, he was a member of the House Committee on the Judiciary and the House Committee on Government Reform. Scarborough was known as a staunch conservative, aligning with the Contract with America and supporting measures like the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. He was re-elected three times with substantial margins. His tenure was also marked by his involvement in the impeachment proceedings against President Bill Clinton. Scarborough resigned from Congress unexpectedly in September 2001, citing a desire to spend more time with his family.

Media career

Following his departure from Congress, Scarborough began a career in media. He hosted the weekend program Scarborough Country on MSNBC before launching the weekday morning show Morning Joe in 2007. The program, co-hosted with Mika Brzezinski and featuring contributors like Willie Geist and Mike Barnicle, quickly became influential in political media circles, known for its lengthy, free-form discussions on American politics and culture. Scarborough also served as a political analyst for NBC News and has written columns for publications like The Washington Post. His media work has earned him several awards, including a Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Television Political Journalism.

Personal life

Scarborough has been married twice. His first marriage was to Melanie Hinton in 1997, with whom he had two children; the couple divorced in 2013. In 2018, he married his Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski in a ceremony at the United States Capitol. The couple, often referred to collectively as "Mika and Joe," have collaborated on books such as The New York Times bestseller Knowing Your Value. Scarborough has four children in total. He has been open about personal tragedies, including the death of his first fiancée and the 2001 loss of a staff member in his District of Columbia office. Scarborough is a practicing Christian.

Political views and public image

Initially a staunch conservative aligned with the Republican Party, Scarborough's views have evolved, leading him to become a vocal critic of former President Donald Trump and what he describes as the populist shift within the GOP. He formally left the Republican Party in 2017 and now identifies as an independent. On Morning Joe, he advocates for a return to what he sees as Reagan-era conservative principles, neoconservative foreign policy, and bipartisanship. This shift has made him a controversial figure, praised by some in the mainstream media as a voice of the anti-Trump Never Trump movement but criticized by many on the American right and within Fox News commentary as a RINO. His public image is inextricably linked to his partnership with Mika Brzezinski and their on-air dynamic. Category:1963 births Category:American television personalities Category:American political commentators Category:Members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida Category:University of Alabama alumni Category:University of Florida alumni Category:Living people