Joe Scarborough started Monday by defending Rep. John Conyers Jr, even in the midst of sexual harassment allegations raised against him and his subsequent stepping down as ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee.

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Despite the allegations of sexual misconduct against the congressman, including a 2015 settlement of $27,000 to a woman Conyers had apparently fired due to her refusal to cooperate with the congressman’s sexual demands, Joe Scarborough claimed that Conyers is an “icon” who, even in the midst of scandal, deserves to be praised for his past work.

“But he is still an icon,” Mika Brzezinski stated.

Scarborough then went on to list many of the congressman’s accomplishments but omitted any detail of the allegations against him.

“Tell me, what do you call this person before this happened, a guy who was a Korean war veteran, a guy who when he got into congress there were four black members in Congress, a guy who single-handedly started the congressional black caucus,” Scarborough stated. He then mentioned his role in helping Rosa Parks and his presence in Selma.

“I would call that an icon, I would call that an icon and if you’re offended by that, if you’re offended by Nancy Pelosi calling a man like that an icon, well let me just say that you remind me an awful lot of the Bible thumpers I grew up with.”

“When he goes home,” Scarborough continued,”It’s not George H.W. Bush, shot out of the skies and into the waters of the pacific, you know what, judge the man by his 93 years, service to America, judge John Conyers by his 88 years in service to America, and get him out of congress.”

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