Scarborough says he thinks Trump kept documents to make deals: ‘This is all about money’

MSNBC pundit Joe Scarborough suggested Friday that former President Trump held on to government secrets after leaving the White House for financial reasons.

“If you’re trying to figure out Donald Trump’s motive, whatever it is, we’ve been saying for eight years, it’s all about money,” Scarborough said on “Morning Joe,” before noting he has “absolutely no evidence that he was selling this information to anybody.”

“But I would never, I would never say, ‘Oh, he was just doing this to hug the boxes,'” the former GOP Florida congressman said. “There’s every reason to believe, given his past, that there would be a possibility that he might trade this information, if not directly for money, maybe for access, maybe just so he can make contacts and build a hotel of this place or that place.”

Scarborough again attempted to clarify he was only theorizing about Trump’s motives, adding, “Not saying he did it, but we would be foolish to be thinking he’s just keeping all of this information because he’s just a weird, quirky dude.”

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Trump pleaded not guilty to 37 charges in federal court this week stemming from his handling of classified documents, which prosecutors allege put U.S. national security at risk and violated the Espionage Act.

The former president has accused President Biden’s Justice Department of a political persecution and attempting to “take him out” as he leads most polls to claim the Republican nomination for the presidency in 2024.

Scarborough and his cohost and wife Mika Brzezinski have consistently been among Trump’s most vocal media critics.