MSNBC host goes after pastor for defending Moore: ‘Aren’t you a moral leader?’

MSNBC host Joy Reid tore into a pastor supporting Alabama GOP Senate candidate Roy Moore on Saturday, questioning the pastor’s moral leadership over accusations of sexual misconduct against Moore involving teenage girls.

On MSNBC’s “AM Joy,” Reid confronted Moore supporter Pastor Mark Burns after Burns defended Moore by saying morality wasn’t “the only quality that makes a good leader.”

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“Hold on just a second. One moment, hold on, hold on,” Reid responded. “I’m going to let you back in. You’re not a lawyer, you’re not a judge. You’re not here to judge whether or not in a court of law Roy Moore would be found guilty after nine women accused him of sexually molesting children.”

She then questioned whether Burns was providing the “moral leadership” expected of a spiritual leader.

“We have you on because you’re a pastor. What your job is, in theory, is to provide a moral framework for the people who go to your church and listen to you. How can you say that in your moral framework, you’re not here to adjudicate the case, but you’re saying that morality is not the only important thing. Aren’t you a moral leader? Like isn’t that what you’re supposed to be advocating for, for moral leadership?” Reid asked.

Burns fired back, calling the timing of the allegations against Moore “suspicious.”

Moore is set to face Democrat Doug Jones in a special Senate election next month, but has faced calls from national Republicans to drop out since the allegations emerged last week.

“I do find the fact that Roy Moore has served faithfully for over 40 years publicly in public office and these women had plenty of opportunity, plenty of opportunities, Joy, to come out and it is suspicious,” Burns said.

“I think the great people of Alabama are realizing that, which is why the majority of Alabamians are still going to vote for Roy Moore, even the governor, even the women that stepped up and said ‘we’re still supporting Roy Moore,’ because their understanding, it is extremely suspicious that this is all coming out after he’s become the candidate,” he added.

Moore has vocally denied the accusations, one of which is that he initiated a sexual encounter with a 14-year-old girl in 1979, when he was 32.

The former Alabama Supreme Court justice says the allegations are a joint effort between the media and Democrats to discredit him.

“If you look at this situation, you’ll see that, because I’m 11 ahead, or 10 and 11 points ahead — this race just being 28 days off, this is a political maneuver. It has nothing to do with reality, it is all about politics,” Moore said at a press conference beside his wife earlier this week.

Multiple polls released this week showed Jones with a lead in the race.