‘Morning Joe’ co-host Joe Scarborough is leaving the Republican Party

Joe Scarborough, the conservative co-host of MSNBC’s political commentary show “Morning Joe,” is leaving the Republican Party.

He made the announcement Tuesday night during an appearance on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” alongside his co-host Mika Brzezinski. A two-minute clip of the segment was teased on the program’s Twitter account earlier Tuesday.

Scarborough tore into what he characterized as a complacent Republican Party unwilling to stand up to President Trump.

“You have to ask yourself, what exactly is the Republican Party willing to do?” Scarborough said to Colbert. “How far are they willing to go? How much of this country and our values are they willing to sell out?”

“Aren’t you a Republican?” Colbert asked.

“I am a Republican, but I’m not going to be a Republican anymore,” Scarborough said to loud applause from the audience. “I’ve got to become an independent.”