MSNBC’s Barnicle: Perception of E-mail Scandal Is ‘Devouring’ Clinton’s Campaign

SCARBOROUGH: “Obviously, a lot of Clinton supporters feeling defensive right now. We certainly can see it in our e-mails and on our Twitter feed. Anybody reporting on the story can certainly see that as well. But we're all hearing, just like we hear things from the State Department, which come out later, but I certainly am hearing, I am sure you're hearing, everybody that I talk to is hearing from powerful Democrats, a rising concern about Hillary Clinton, about this FBI investigation. And they're looking at Joe Biden. They're looking at Bernie Sanders. They're looking hard at other options."

BARNICLE: "Rising concern, your phrase, is putting it mildly."

SCARBOROUGH: “It is. But if I said anything more, they'll go -- he is just a Republican saying that. It's near panic for a lot of Democrats who want to win the White House."

BARNICLE: "There is a huge gap between the reality of what's in these emails -- we don't know -- and the perception of the e-mails themselves, which is devouring her candidacy. The perception around the e-mails is devouring her candidacy. She can't seem to get ahead of it or get out from it. Again, the e-mails that are in context -- we don't know. We don't know what's in the e-mails. But you hear from any number of Democrats -- I heard yesterday that Jerry Brown, the governor of California, was considering entering the race because of the e-mail controversy and because of their doubts about the strength of Hillary Clinton's candidacy."

BRZEZINSKI: “She's trying to keep it on policy."

SCARBOROUGH: “We do know this, but we do know this, Mike, her story has been inconsistent. It has been wrong. She has had to reverse herself several times. Mike says we don't know what's in the all the e-mails. I think we'll find out. But when I first became a lawyer, I was told, tell the jury everything about your client."

BRZEZINSKI: “Right.”

SCARBOROUGH: “If you don't let them assume the worst, tell them the worst right up front and then they'll work with it. If you don't, they'll always assume the worst. That's exactly what's happening here.”