The Official Mike Barnicle Website

9/11: Final words

Mike Barnicle — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 13:18:11 +0000

“My thoughts right now are about all the phone calls that were placed by people who never made it out of the buildings or never made it off of the airplanes that were flying in the sky. All the last phone calls to their children, to their wives that ended with the phrase ‘I love you,’” says Morning Joe contributor Mike Barnicle on this 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

The post 9/11: Final words first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

9/11: What Defines Firefighters

Mike Barnicle — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 13:08:30 +0000

Tune in for this Morning Joe conversation with International Association of Fire Fighters General President Edward Kelly reflecting on the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, the sacrifice of the 343 FDNY firefighters who lost their lives, and the values that define being a firefighter. “I want to ask you about the core of being a firefighter. There’s an old expression that when the cops come down the street, someone’s in trouble. When a fire department comes down the street, help is on the way. What is it…that makes firefighters different?” asks veteran columnist Mike Barnicle. Hear Kelly explain why sacrifice and “putting others before self” is the cornerstone of being a firefighter.

The post 9/11: What Defines Firefighters first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

9/11: Keeping the stories alive

Mike Barnicle — Fri, 11 Sep 2026 13:02:06 +0000

Watch this Morning Joe conversation marking the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks as Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski and Mike Barnicle reflect on the courage and sacrifice shown on 9/11, the unity that followed, and why those stories should be passed on to future generations. “We ought to be telling the stories of those lost and the survivors, their survivors….We have to tell their stories. Everybody loves to hear a story. This is a tragic story, but…part of it is a wonderful story. The children who are succeeding in this country. This country that was attacked that day. Forget about what happened that day in terms of, you know, who the enemies are; we have enough enemies in this life of ours. We should concentrate on the heroes who died and their surviving children and grandparents,” says Barnicle.

The post 9/11: Keeping the stories alive first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

Tough choices: health care or housing

Mike Barnicle — Wed, 09 Sep 2026 19:39:32 +0000

Watch this Morning Joe conversation with Democratic Kansas Senate nominee and megachurch pastor Adam Hamilton discussing the impact of Affordable Care Act subsidy rollbacks, Medicare cuts, and why he says many Kansans are being forced to make tough decisions or go without health care insurance. “Adam, you mentioned the rollback in subsidies to the Affordable Care Act that the incumbent supported and the level of Medicare cuts that have been made by the One Big, Beautiful Bill. I’m wondering how that level of cruelty, inflicted cruelty—legislatively inflicted cruelty—is working out for so many Kansas people who are losing health care, losing benefits,” asks veteran columnist Mike Barnicle. Hear Hamilton explain that one Kansas woman shared with him that because of the change she had to choose between her house payment and her insurance payment and chose her house because she couldn’t afford both.

The post Tough choices: health care or housing first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

Midterm headline: Gas and groceries

Mike Barnicle — Wed, 09 Sep 2026 19:19:24 +0000

“This campaign comes down to a uniquely friendly atmosphere for Democrats. It’s basically based on how people live today in America. People live from day to day in America. People are upset….I was thinking about the home heating oil cost as we were talking about costs—those are going to be through the roof in the northeast and for people living in cold weather states. It’s going to be incredible to be able to afford to heat your house this winter. Gas and groceries: that’s what it always comes down to. And gas and groceries are bothering a lot of people a lot of the time, all day long,” says veteran journalist Mike Barnicle during this Morning Joe conversation with Willie Geist, Mika Brzezinski, Jonathan Lemire and Donny Deutsch as they discuss rising energy prices, affordability concerns, and how economic issues are shaping this year’s midterm elections.

The post Midterm headline: Gas and groceries first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

Frances Tiafoe: the toast of NYC

Mike Barnicle — Wed, 09 Sep 2026 18:43:50 +0000

“The origin of the story is a country in distant Africa….The culmination story is in the United States of America by a young man….He represents America. That’s what America is all about. The tragedy of the Trump administration—both administrations—is they have spent now a decade together—four years out of office, but a decade—running this country down. They pose as great patriots. They pose as, ‘we’re going to make America strong again, we’re going to bring back America.’ Nobody has to bring back America. The United States of America is the greatest goddamn country on the Earth. People don’t travel. They don’t realize it—but it is. It’s the greatest country in the world,” says veteran columnist Mike Barnicle during this Morning Joe conversation with Joe Scarborough, Mika Brzezinski and Donny Deutsch about U.S. Open semifinalist Frances Tiafoe—whose parents came to America from Sierra Leone—and what it represents about America amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration.

The post Frances Tiafoe: the toast of NYC first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

Can America be Saved?

Mike Barnicle — Wed, 02 Sep 2026 14:17:02 +0000

“How much time does the country have to be this country? What is happening to this country? We have a 40 trillion dollar debt, 40 trillion dollars. We have worries about what’s going to happen on election day in this country. Are there going to be troops sent to election places, sent to polling places? Is the election going to be bagged by this administration? We have allies—we have had allies since the end of World War II—that are all pissed off at us throughout the world. And we’re talking about, you know, ridiculous things with this guy: ‘Lake America.’ I mean, what has happened to America? Can we save it? Can we reclaim it? Can we rebuild it?….There’s so much anger in this country that it has to be tapped one way or another; but the anger is out there because people realize that the country is being stolen from them,” says Morning Joe contributor Mike Barnicle during this conversation with Jonathan Lemire, Jennifer Palmieri, Peter Alexander and Katty Kay about growing economic concerns ahead of the midterm elections, the political challenges facing President Donald Trump, and broader questions about the direction of the country before November.

The post Can America be Saved? first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

Are We Marching Backward?

Mike Barnicle — Fri, 28 Aug 2026 12:54:37 +0000

“Watching these pictures of an event that occurred in 1963, it caused me to think about the country that existed in 1963: three months after the March on Washington, President Kennedy was killed. Less than two years after the March on Washington, the first element of the 9th Marines landed at a place called Da Nang in South Vietnam. And we know the roller coaster after that, what happened to this country. And I’m wondering, from your perspective, do you think it was easier to unify this country…then than it is today?” asks veteran columnist Mike Barnicle of the Rev. Al Sharpton during this Morning Joe conversation on the anniversary of the March on Washington 63 years ago.

The post Are We Marching Backward? first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

Trump’s Putin Problem

Mike Barnicle — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 13:16:33 +0000

“Is there anyone around the president of the United States who would step into the Oval Office and say, ‘Mr. President, Russia is not our friend, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is not our friend, we’ve got to rethink a couple of elements of the relationship we have…with the Russians?,” asks veteran columnist Mike Barnicle during this Morning Joe conversation with Jonathan Lemire and Willie Geist about CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s rare trip to Moscow, concerns that Russia could test NATO by targeting one of its Baltic allies, and whether the Trump administration is doing enough to deter further Russian aggression.

The post Trump’s Putin Problem first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.

Trump’s midterm strategy

Mike Barnicle — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 13:11:29 +0000

Watch this Morning Joe conversation with Willie Geist, Jonathan Lemire, Jon Meacham and Mike Barnicle discussing President Donald Trump’s plan to spend heavily on midterm ads touting his record, even as new polling shows him underwater with voters on several major issues—and what that disconnect could mean for Republicans heading into the midterms. “You also have an administration that almost on a daily basis goes out of its way to remove programs or trim programs aimed at helping middle-class people and people living right at the edge—poor people—in this country with a level of cruelty involved in what they do that is unmatched in my memory,” comments Barnicle. Will Trump’s messaging resonate with voters, or will concerns about his policies ultimately shape the midterm vote?

The post Trump’s midterm strategy first appeared on The Official Mike Barnicle Website.