The charges of question-dodging started right away during Hillary Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook's interview on MSNBC's Morning Joe Wednesday morning. The first question Mook declined to answer was when Joe Scarborough asked about the breakup of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, and everybody laughed, but that set the template for the entire nine-minute interview. The first few questions were fine — about Clinton's pneumonia and the Republicans voting for her instead of Donald Trump — but Mook hit choppy waters about three minutes in, when Willie Geist asks about Syria.
Mook demurred when Geist asked if Clinton was disappointed when President Obama did not enforce his "red line" against Assad — "Well, you're here to speak for her, Robby," Geist said — and again when Mike Barnicle asked how Clinton thinks the U.S. should respond to the bombing of an aid convoy near Aleppo. "We love you, buddy, but what are you here for if you can't answer basic questions?" Scarborough asked. "We may be tiptoeing into Gary Johnson territory here if you don't know the answer to that basic of a question: What is the response to Aleppo? Then why do we have you here?" After a brief respite on trade deals, Geist turned the interview back to Syria. Mook said go read Clinton's plan on her website, and Katy Tur jumped in: "But if Donald Trump doesn't have a plan, as you're saying he doesn't — and I've been on the campaign trail with him — and you can't lay out your plan, how can you convince voters that Hillary Clinton is the better choice, Robby?" Watch below. Peter Weber
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The Assassin: action-packed caper is 'terrific fun'The Week Recommends Keeley Hawes stars as a former hitwoman drawn out of retirement for 'one last job'
-
The EPA wants to green-light approval for a twice-banned herbicideUnder the radar Dicamba has been found to harm ecosystems
-
Crossword: July 30, 2025The Week's daily crossword
-
Judge halts GOP defunding of Planned ParenthoodSpeed Read The Trump administration can't withhold Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood, said the ruling
-
Trump contradicts Israel, says 'starvation' in GazaSpeed Read The president suggests Israel could be doing more to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians
-
Trump executive order targets homelessSpeed Read It will now be easier for states and cities to remove homeless people from the streets
-
Columbia pays $200M to settle with White HouseSpeed Read The Trump administration accused the school of failing to protect its Jewish students amid pro-Palestinian protests
-
Florida judge and DOJ make Epstein trouble for TrumpSpeed Read The Trump administration's request to release grand jury transcripts from the Epstein investigation was denied
-
Trump attacks Obama as Epstein furor mountsSpeed Read The Trump administration accused the Obama administration of 'treasonous' behavior during the 2016 election
-
Trump administration releases MLK filesSpeed Read Newly released documents on the 1968 assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did not hold any new revelations, King historians said
-
Japan's prime minister feels pressure after election lossesSpeed Read Shigeru Ishiba has vowed to remain in office
