On Tuesday night's "Hardball", Chris Matthews praised the current Democratic frontrunner's speech on race as "Worthy of Abraham Lincoln," and also claimed it bypassed Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" address as the "best speech ever given on race in this country." Of Barack Obama's speech in Philadelphia today, Matthews went on to declare: "I think this is the kind of speech I think first graders should see, people in the last year of college should see before they go out in the world. This should be, to me, an American tract."
The following comments from Matthews on Obama's speech occurred on the March 18 edition of MSNBC's "Hardball":
CHRIS MATTHEWS OPENING THE SHOW: A divide as American as the Grand Canyon, a speech worthy of Abraham Lincoln. Let's play Hardball!
...
MATTHEWS: Did Barack Obama distance himself enough from Reverend Wright? Did he calm the fears of the white voter? How did the speech play? We'll have much more on this momentous day and what I personally view as the best speech ever given on race in this country. One that went beyond "I have a dream," to "I have lived the dream but have also lived in this country."
...
MATTHEWS: Let's all listen now to a bit of the speech. We should all, by the way, at some point after the program, please wait for the end of "Hardball," at least. But check this out on our Web site, MSNBC.com, you can watch the whole speech. I think this is the kind of speech I think first graders should see, people in the last year of college should see before they go out in the world. This should be, to me, an American tract. Something that you just check in with, now and then, like reading Great Gatsby and Huckleberry Finn. Read this speech, once in a while, ladies and gentlemen. This is us. It's us with the scab ripped off. It's white people talking the way they do when they're alone with other white people, some people. It's black people talking the way they are when there's not white people around. It's an honest statement from a guy who comes from both backgrounds. We have never heard anything like this.
...
MATTHEWS: We'll talk about the politics of all this and whether voters will be convinced, by what many of us think is one of the great speeches in American history and we watch a lot of them, when we return. You're watching "Hardball" only on MSNBC.
—Geoffrey Dickens is the senior news analyst at the Media Research Center.
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oh.. oh..
March 18, 2008 - 17:12 ET by MidAmericaoh.. oh.. somebody got another thrill up their leg......
Hardball?
March 18, 2008 - 20:31 ET by dronetekIs the title of his show supposed to be sarcastic? I dont get it.
»→ dronetek
March 18, 2008 - 20:41 ET by Cool ArrowIt's just that "Tingling Stimulus Package" didn't sound as hard hitting.
♣ a seal
Hardball was second choice
March 19, 2008 - 06:12 ET by Mica the Magnificent"I'm Chris Matthews, this is Liberal Licker" left little to the imagination
Hey, Chrissy...You got to wipe up another puddle?
March 18, 2008 - 17:12 ET by c5thenWhat's that feeling you have running down your leg?
The day that "politician" became a career choice is the day we started losing the Republic. Let's get it back! Alan Keyes '08.
Matthews
March 18, 2008 - 17:20 ET by iveseenitallWhen, oh when, will this lunatic retire? How disgusting and ignorant his comments are. Sad.
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
I heard this and found it
March 18, 2008 - 17:20 ET by Mark FinkelsteinI heard this and found it totally over the top. I'll offer up a little bit of defense of Chris, though. He seems to be given to hyperbole when it comes to political speeches. People will recall that when Romney gave his speech on faith, Matthews enthused:
Entertainment
March 18, 2008 - 17:29 ET by iveseenitallThen he is just there for "entertainment". I humbly suggest that he is pretending then, to be a serious "journalist".
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
I say
March 18, 2008 - 17:32 ET by drillanwrMatthews is auditioning for WH Press Sec. under an Obama Administration ...
He might even be willing to slip Hellen Thomas the tongue for the title.
When you men get home and face an anti-war protestor, look him in the eyes and shake his hand. Then, wink at his girlfriend because she knows she’s dating a pussy… ~ Attributed to General Tommy Franks
Matthews Qualifications
March 18, 2008 - 17:52 ET by Gat New YorkHe gets a tingle up his leg when he hears Obama.
»→ Gat
March 18, 2008 - 17:55 ET by Cool ArrowAnd with Obama's deity all but certain, one must only conclude Chrissy just has an overactive divining rod.
♣ a seal
UGH!!
March 18, 2008 - 17:59 ET by PrairieSkyLOL!! The Helen Thomas thing is just too gross to comprehend...But I wouldn't put it past him...
Over the top???? Mark,
March 18, 2008 - 18:54 ET by motherbeltOver the top????
Mark, you don't think Abaraham Lincoln could take lessons from Obama?
Just imagine what he could have done with the Gettysburg Address!
mb,The Gettysburg Address?
March 18, 2008 - 19:23 ET by Chris Normanmb,
The Gettysburg Address? Oh, please - that was just a speech. But this, THIS, this was THE SPEECH!!!!!!!! THE SPEECH to end all so-called speeches. There will NEVER be another speech from anyone else worthy of the name "speech" after this one. It's so perfect, so beautiful, I have to cry now.....
Pull yourself together!!!
March 18, 2008 - 19:30 ET by motherbeltPull yourself together!!! <SLAP!>
LOL
Thanks, I needed that. I'll
March 18, 2008 - 19:40 ET by Chris NormanThanks, I needed that. I'll dry my tears on a copy of that (snicker) wanna-be speech that Lincoln gave at Gettysburg. After THE SPEECH, that's all it's good for. Oh, no. I'm beginning to tear up again. :)
Okay, okay...you've made
March 18, 2008 - 20:40 ET by JerOkay, okay...you've made your point, Chris--not that it's wrong, mind you.
Jer
I'm sorry, Jer. If I knew
March 19, 2008 - 11:14 ET by Chris NormanMy apologies, Jer. If I knew you were trying to get in, I wouldn't have continued my conversation with mb.
No apologies necessary, Chris
March 19, 2008 - 17:28 ET by JerNo apologies necessary, Chris...just trying to inject a little needle over what was a very funny and effective gig you had going on re. Obama/Lincoln.
Jer
Thanks for the balancing
March 18, 2008 - 20:37 ET by JerThanks for the balancing comment Mark. Matthews has also gushed over McCain and Guiliani on occasion.
Jer
Yes, it's always important
March 19, 2008 - 11:11 ET by Chris NormanYes, it's always important to throw in "balance" just for Jer. You get eagerly sought kudos from him when you do.
Oh, please. Matthews hasn't gushed over anyone like he gushes over Obama. Noting his tendency to over praise others on occasion doesn't mitigate his near hysterical declaration of love.
What can I say...I'm a big
March 19, 2008 - 17:33 ET by JerWhat can I say...I'm a big fan of "fair and balanced" and like to encourage it. Maybe your observations would be better directed at Mark.
Jer
Chris' Crush
March 18, 2008 - 17:22 ET by BarkerCHRIS MATTHEWS OPENING THE SHOW: Four score and seven thrills ago.......
Barker... OMG! ...that
March 19, 2008 - 17:36 ET by bigtimerBarker...
OMG!
...that is rich...ROFL
Although idiotic, this
March 18, 2008 - 17:23 ET by TEAlthough idiotic, this isn't the most idiotic thing ever said by Matthews. A few years ago, Matthews said on his unwatched leftist freakshow that Paul Wolfowitz cooked up a conspiracy in the bowels of the Pentagon to funnel a dog collar to Lyndie England in Iraq with an order to place the dog collar around the neck of an Iraqi prisoner. Strange dude ....
Political speech....not a brave speech
March 18, 2008 - 17:33 ET by txcoI've heard this speech described as a very brave speech...I totally disagree. This was a political speech for damage control.
A brave speech would have been if sometime in that 20 years Obama sat in his church he had stood up and told rev. Wright that what he was saying was wrong.
Damage Control
March 18, 2008 - 18:59 ET by motherbeltThis was a political speech for damage control. -txco
Exactly right. He only decided to make it when it became public knowledge that he lied about not knowing of Rev. Wright's penchant for America-trashing. Once that quote from Wright a year ago came out, saying that Obama realized he would have to distance himself, he knew his goose was cooked.
mb... Here's MoDo's take
March 19, 2008 - 17:39 ET by bigtimermb...
Here's MoDo's take on the CYA, racist, victim-hood speech.
Color it Grey..or Gray.
I believe
March 18, 2008 - 17:26 ET by Army Bratthat if Obama threw up, Matthews would praise the color and odor of his vomitus.
Happy Trails...
How bout' dat
March 18, 2008 - 17:28 ET by acumenI did not know Abe Lincoln threw his dear ol' granny under the bus to assist his electability.
Sorry ... But I just can't help but make the connection ...
March 18, 2008 - 17:30 ET by drillanwr(Please insert Obama in place of the Martian Amb.
the "thinking" American voter for the General
and Chris Matthews for the WH Press Sec) ...
Movie Analogy for Obama's speech on "race" today:
OBAMA (Martian Ambassador): Ack! Ack! Ack!
OBAMA Translation (Martian Translator Device): All green of skin... 800 centuries ago, their bodily fluids include the birth of half-breeds. For the fundamental truth self-determination of the cosmos, for dark is the suede that mows like a harvest.
Thinking American Voters (General Decker): What the hell does that mean?
CHRIS MATTHEWS (WH Press Sec. Jerry Ross): He said that WELL!
When you men get home and face an anti-war protestor, look him in the eyes and shake his hand. Then, wink at his girlfriend because she knows she’s dating a pussy… ~ Attributed to General Tommy Franks
What do you expect from MSDNC?
March 18, 2008 - 17:31 ET by Missouri ConservativeThis network has become a virtual PR machine for Barack Obama.
"women and minorities hardest hit"
Sounds like....
March 18, 2008 - 17:31 ET by paddy..our little Chrissy made another trip over Viagra Falls....
I can't believe they allow
March 18, 2008 - 17:39 ET by mostlymoderateI can't believe they allow this "pornography" on television. Matthews definitely performed something on Obama in this little bit. Disgusting...
Matthews has come to
March 18, 2008 - 17:41 ET by Chris NormanMatthews has come to resemble one of those old time "sob sister" reporters, who emote and gush over every little thing from those they favor - he's about as accurate too...
Matthews
March 18, 2008 - 17:58 ET by iveseenitallHe and Olbermann are a disgrace, even to what's left of the "profession". Sad.
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
What a headcase Matthews has become...
March 18, 2008 - 17:55 ET by PrairieSkyThis nut actually thinks that Obama's pathetic excuse-laden speech surpasses Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech? He really has lost it. I don't know what else to say about this...
»→ headcase
March 18, 2008 - 17:59 ET by Cool Arrowand judging from Chrissy's thrill coefficient, "headcase" might carry something of a double meaning.
♣ a seal
LOL!..
March 18, 2008 - 18:04 ET by PrairieSkyCute!! But I'm not going near that one!!!
»→ Chris Tingle
March 18, 2008 - 18:27 ET by Cool ArrowIt's possible Chris is enjoying his own "stimulus package"
♣ a seal
Okay Cool...
March 18, 2008 - 23:31 ET by PrairieSkyYou are having waaaayyyy too much fun with this!!! (But it is funny!)
Better than Lincoln and King?
March 18, 2008 - 17:57 ET by Redrowan2000Wow ,Chris This is great another holiday. Barack Hussein Obama day. Your leg will probably numb up at that.
Look, the stuffs coming over the top of the toilet bowl with this guy. He tries damage control and falls short except that it is interesting that the grandmother he supposedly loves has bus tracks on the front and the back.
Hate mongers breed hate mongers--there is no context here just vitriol and hate.
Wright reminds me of the leaders of the klan spewing there venom in the 50's and 60's against blacks . Meanspirited bigots white and black have been exposed, why is the media willing to give Wright a free ride? Or for that matter Sharpton and Farrakhan? The love affair with hateful blacks like Malcolm X and H Rap Bown and Huey Newton and George Jackson and Cleaver (Eldrige not Theodore) is not new just sad.
"Don't let the bastards grind you down."
Red
Red
March 18, 2008 - 18:03 ET by iveseenitallSo right,Red. And not only do they give them a pass, they actually defend guys like Wright. And they love guys like Obama. It's sick.
NEVER,NEVER trust a "liberal"
Matthews saw a different speech
March 18, 2008 - 17:59 ET by Gat New YorkThis was not a courageous speech. It was a politically expedient speech.
Barack Obama is a very smart, well educated, highly articulate, and charismatic individual.
But here is his problem.
He has been trying to be something he has never been.
His appearance is an African American. But was born to a white woman, was reared by a white mother and white grandparents, in white neighborhoods, with white friends, and went to very good white schools. His only connection to the so-called African American experience is after law school with the church and the pastor of that church in Chicago.
He is one of many lawyers who had political aspirations and I do not doubt that his role as a community activist was to further his political aspirations as was his affiliation with that powerful church, which I do not fault him for. If you are a state legislator from a district then you must be a part of that district. Part of this road to the U.S. Senate was the influence of that church among African Americans in Illinois.
But when you seek the Presidency then you have to find a way of distancing yourself from the fiery and controversial pastor of that church. He has not and in fact made him an advisor on his campaign team. That was very poor judgment.
So instead of distancing himself from 20 years of anti-American and anti-Semitic rhetoric, Obama chose to turn this into a racial divide. In doing so he alienates white working class, Jews (smart ones), Latinos, and other groups.
If he is the Democratic nominee McCain will be swept into office in a landslide.
Maybe it's Journalists talking when alone with other journalists
March 18, 2008 - 18:01 ET by JayTeeBut It ain't anything I would recognize as Current Events . . .but then I haven't been in a Black Church....how 'bout you Chris ?
And Chris, your comment describing the life of Obama as "I have lived the dream but have also lived in this country" just doesn't carry the weight after $$1.6 million in income, senator of the US, Wife Graduating from Harvard, just doesn't justify the Complaint, or the REMOVAL of the Complaint agains Obama and his GD Pastor.
Sorry, Chris, you just can't Scrub this one off and get it Clean enough.
Chrissy is starting to
March 18, 2008 - 18:10 ET by Clear thinkerChrissy is starting to sound a lot like one of the characters from the Wizard of Oz. You know, the one that wanted nothing more than to get a brain.
"Abstain from McCain"
I am shocked to discover
March 18, 2008 - 18:13 ET by mostlymoderateI am shocked to discover just how much power the left-wing mainstream media has in this country. For the next few days, brace yourself for unstoppable praise for Mr. Obama's speech (even though he stole it from J. Jackson).
Not to sound like a complete jerk, but sometimes I wonder how "great" speeches in history *really* were or whether the media just puffed them up over and over and over... John F. Kennedy comes to mind and so does Martin Luther King. (<--am I even allowed to question this???)
THEN, I wonder if people like Nixon were *really* all that bad or whether we have been *programmed* to think of them with vile disgust.
The media shapes everything we are in America. Sad.
Unfortunately, Barack will get away with it
March 18, 2008 - 18:36 ET by sms5217I agree with the power of the leftist, mainstream media. People, especially conservatives, forget that 75% of the people get their news and opinions straight and undiluted by these jackals.
CNN is on at every airport, public meeting place, library, you name it. CBS is on American Airlines. You can't get away from the MSM unless you are on Mars. Until very recently, CNN was the only news network in many hotels.
We at Newsbusters, NRO, and other sites may decry the Baracksters speech as a complete fraud and phony, but the "people" from coast to coast are going to listen to the MSM opinion makers and storylines and are going to feel that Obama put the issue to bed, gave the best speech since the Gettysburg Address, and everything is back on track for the Obamaniacs to get inaugurated on 1/20/09.
Obama won today no matter what he said today. The MSM was going to lap it up no matter what. A measly 2.9 million will counter that view on O'Reilly vs. 30 million plus on CNN+CBS+NBC+ABC+MSNBC. How depressing!
Trial lawyers are the scum of the earth
See that is what I am
March 18, 2008 - 18:47 ET by mostlymoderateSee that is what I am talking about. Ronald Reagan gave some of the most fantastic speeches ever but you would never know it. The MSM would not dare say anything great about Reagan.
Which reminds me. Remember when Pat Buchanan was running for President? Well, Buchanan's candidacy was put to sleep by the MSM because he was somewhat "radical" in their eyes. Isn't Obama's support for a guy like Wright for more than 20 years the same thing???
Is Chris Matthews on Obama's Payroll?
March 18, 2008 - 18:13 ET by SupermanMy goodness. Chris Matthews does more Obama cheerleading than anyone else on television. If Chris isn't getting a paycheck from the Obama campaign, he might as well be.
»→ Dalai Obama
March 18, 2008 - 18:18 ET by Cool ArrowHe is a devout follower of the Dalai Obama. His worship is freely given.
♣ a seal
Chris, get a grip. dam.
March 18, 2008 - 19:58 ET by USA4freedomChris, get a grip. dam.
Ronald Reagan, 1962: I did not leave the Democratic party, the party left me.
Insert: your name, 2008, and the Republican party.
Romney / Jendil 2012 (if,we survive)
I think it's time to rename
March 18, 2008 - 23:33 ET by D2BostonI think it's time to rename Matthews' show to Hardon...
oh my
March 19, 2008 - 01:09 ET by maggieqpublicoh my
Martin Luther King, Jr. was
March 19, 2008 - 01:11 ET by maggieqpublicMartin Luther King, Jr. was a great orator who spoke about realizing racial equality through the vehicle of non-violence.
Barack Obama is a great orator who speaks about “hope”… all the while acting as an apologist for a black nationalist preacher in the style of Stokely Carmichael. (Carmichael rejected the nonviolence of Dr. King, and joined the Black Panthers… becoming a well-known proponent of Black Power/black elitism.)
How discouraging it is that Chris Matthews is so quick to exalt Mr. Obama’s views on race. Chris has forgotten that “words have meaning.”
Chris Matthews?
March 19, 2008 - 07:30 ET by ErnestChris Matthews? Hahahahahahahahahahaha!
Who cares what this mouthpiece says? Isn't it time as Americans we quit listening to these same talking heads and cheerleaders who have promoted every one of these politicians? From Clinton to GW to Obama. Or the same ones who promoted this housing/ economic debacle we are now in or this never ending war we are now in or...
Wake up America. We are being lead around by the nose by people who do not care about our communities, do not care about our families or children, do not care about us. We must educate ourselves and then decide what is best for US. The politicians, TV talking heads and financial "leaders" have us just where they want us.
Matthews as indeed flipped
March 19, 2008 - 08:13 ET by msh1973Matthews as indeed flipped his lid...comparing Obama to Lincoln? Further, I have never "sat around with other white people" and talked about black's in American. Don't tell me he is comparing this "cover my backside" speech to the Gettysburg address? Unreal!