Chris Matthews Takes Sen. DeMint Out of Context to Suggest He's Playing to Birthers
Is context a four-letter word to MSNBC's Chris Matthews?
During the "Sideshow" segment on Friday's "Hardball," Matthews ripped a comment conservative Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) made during a recent speech to the Federalist Society in order to paint DeMint either as a birther or as one playing cynically to those who believe President Obama was not born in the United States.
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Here's what he said: "This whole idea that the president is the leader of our country is a mistake." This whole idea that the president is the leader of our country is a mistake. How does that make any sense, unless you're a birther, and that's what he sounds like.
The liberal Talking Points Memo (TPM) blog broke that story Thursday afternoon, but at least TPM provided the full context of DeMint's February 17 comments (emphasis mine):
During a speech covering the national debt, earmarks, the 2012 Presidential election and the repeal of the health care law on Thursday, DeMint told members of the D.C. chapter of the conservative Federalist Society, "This whole idea that the President is the leader of our country is a mistake."
DeMint added, "Leadership starts in the homes in the communities, in businesses, in churches. I've lived in a community and I know where the leaders are and it's not in Washington. And this pretense that he's our nation's leader... I'm not just talking about Obama I'm talking about any President."
"A candidate who goes out and makes all these promises about what he's going to do in all areas of our society needs to be removed from consideration," DeMint said to applause from the audience.
In other words, DeMint was saying we need to stop considering the U.S. president to be THE leader of the nation on any and every problem imaginable under the sun. Some things, nay, most things, are not properly issues to be addressed by tossing federal money and federal bureaucrats at the problem.
The only question is did Matthews mindlessly riff off a quote taken out of context by one of his producers, or did he intentionally misrepresent DeMint's sentiments in order to tar him as a conspiracy theorist?
- Ken Shepherd's blog
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Comments
First
Submitted by 10ksnooker on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 5:59pm.
Liberals can't think.
Second liberals cannot tolerate truth.
From there you're good.
Ken....
Submitted by Lord-come-soon-... on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 5:59pm.
you don't honestly expect Matthews to be honest in his reporting, do you? He is incapable of being fair to conservatives. He is just an Obama-parrot. That's why he's at MSDNC and it's why almost no one watches him.
I'm not shocked, but it is
Submitted by Ken Shepherd on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 7:08pm.
I'm not shocked, but it is unacceptable to rip things completely out of context in order to make a point that is not supported by the evidence.
You just
Submitted by Lord-come-soon-... on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 8:34pm.
described Matthew's "journalism" standard perfectly. He knows no other way. Keep on keepin' on!
Matthews
Submitted by RightRealDeal on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 6:00pm.
The Leg Tingler is at it again. What a numbnuts!
C'mon COMCAST!
Let Comcast come...
Submitted by NevadanConservative on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 6:26pm.
...provided that they are not as pathetically in bed with the regime as, say, Google.
Otherwise you are trading Khruschev for Brezhnev.
NVCon
Let Comcast come....
Submitted by RightRealDeal on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 7:18pm.
I see your point...........just hoping they come in and convert the whole stinking place to another food channel or reruns of the ORIGINAL Three Stooges.....
What's wrong, Chrissie?
Submitted by Newsbusterbrown on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 6:29pm.
What's wrong, Chrissie? Didn't feel like attacking any attractive conservative women this time?
“There are no easy answers, but there are simple answers. We must have the courage to do what we know is morally right.” - Ronald Reagan (1964 Republican Convention)
Chrissy has more to say
Submitted by donabernathy on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 6:31pm.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1Pdu5y-zbY
gotta love me some Chrissy
roflmao
The MSM knows it cannot win the substance of this debate.
Submitted by Ashrak on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 6:32pm.
Lefties are going to continue this trick until Republicans STAND UP with the Constitution in one hand and a demand for proof of eligibility in the other.
Republicans must understand this - GET OFF THE FENCE! PICK A SIDE.
Quit being panzies by atually standing up for the your namesake - the REPUBLIC. Yes, that will mean actually having to rock the immigration boat, but the VAST MAJORITY of Americans WANT that. So DO it.
He did it so he could say
Submitted by bkeyser on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 8:21pm.
He did it so he could say the word "birther". That's why this is still going on, two years plus into Barry's one and only term; to paint the opposition as crazy.
Personally, I've not picked a side on this issue; I don't know where he was born and I don't accept his "word" on anything. He lies like it's going out of style. But I've always assumed that not directly putting the issue to rest was not necessarily an indication of foreign birth; rather I think this is just another ploy -like "racist"- for re-election. "They won't vote for a black man because they're racists. It has nothing to do with his politics, it has to be the color of his skin" (that's pretty much played itself out now) becomes, "They won't vote for him because they're crazy birthers." This is gping to be hammered on from now until Nov. '12. AND, an MSNBC pundit calling a Senator birther isn't quite as risky as calling him a racist.
I don't think it matters much to liberals whether it was out of context...
I thought he was one!
Submitted by jon_torlin on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 7:20pm.
Hell, I thought Chrissie decided to be like a birther and even demanded DuhOne to show his birth certificate! Changed his mind, did he?
-Jon
O'reilly is a shill against "birthers"
Submitted by tombaker on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 8:15pm.
NBC/MSNBC are in campaign to make birthers looking insane, and O'Reilly is joining in with them.
O'Reilly is ignorant of what the new Governor of Alaska did, and ignorant, that the Governor said that would not search for the missing document any further, unless he was given authority by President Obama.
The issue is simple: A 1961 birth document should be on record. Obama is restricting access to this original 1961 docment. Since its stated that he was born in a hospital in Hawaii, the document was clearly generated in 1961, and all the other children at the time, all have their originals.
The question is will Obama allow the state of Alaska to release the 1961 document, just ask the Press Secretary this simple question...the 1961 document. The governor of Alaska says that is all he needs. Can someone just ask the President that, clearly OReilly is gut less, an all about himself.
tombaker
Submitted by Radical1979 on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 8:20pm.
Do you mean Hawaii?
~They all look the same
Submitted by Wrathful Brunette on Tue, 02/22/2011 - 8:02pm.
from his planet.
I can't wait
Submitted by Bob K on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 9:09pm.
'til MSNBC finally gets tired enough of low ratings and revenues and gives their whole Cavalcade of Clowns the Olberdork treatment.
So in the last few days
Submitted by Van Halen on Mon, 02/21/2011 - 9:10pm.
So in the last few days Matthews has been blowing spittle over birthers, Clinton, Palin, DeMint, the TEA Party - the same tired, boring "I hate the Right and love the Left" topics from MSDNC.
Meanwhile, the economy continues to fail under Obama, our foreign policy is a confused disaster, the Democrat Party is wrecked (Can anyone say 'Barack Hussein Obama'?) and the Middle East is melting down.
No wonder no one is watching MSDNC.
The Tingle Has Moved ...
Submitted by LibertyAtStake on Tue, 02/22/2011 - 6:41pm.
... from his leg to his brain. It won't be long now.
d(^_^)b
http://libertyatstake.blogspot.com/
"Because the Only Good Progressive is a Failed Progressive"
For every birther there is a truther
Submitted by Mike009 on Tue, 02/22/2011 - 7:00pm.
The ones who can't stop talking about birthers are the talking heads on MSNBC and progressive radio. By always talking about the birthers they think they can discredit critics of the Obama administration by making them look like kooks.
Why does Newsbusters continue
Submitted by Satchmo on Tue, 02/22/2011 - 7:59pm.
Why does Newsbusters continue to allow the left to define terms? Birthers is a term intended to smear Constitutionalists while suggesting they are akin to "truthers." So how about combatting liberal bias and start calling them what they are: Constitutionalists.
Why don't you start your own blog, Incestmo?
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 02/22/2011 - 8:07pm.
Instead of whining about what the NB contributors write?
It's a free country, you know.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
I'll second that, B
Submitted by SickofLibs on Tue, 02/22/2011 - 8:20pm.
NB can't continue fumigating on a weekly basis without more annoying fundraising drives.
CNSNews.com looked into the
Submitted by Ken Shepherd on Wed, 02/23/2011 - 12:32am.
CNSNews.com looked into the birth certificate story and found there's no there there.
It's a mindless and insane distraction from the thousands of substantive disagreements conservatives have with Obama on every front.
So you'll excuse me when I slam the liberal media for unfairly characterizing a solid conservative as a birther.
No, I believe that...
Submitted by uhohshortsonthe... on Wed, 02/23/2011 - 9:14am.
...someone just read the first sentence of the transcript to Mr. Thrill-up-my-leg, and he went off half-cocked like he does with anything else. To be fair to the person who read it to him, that person probably said, "wait, Chris, there's more to the story here..." but was cut off in mid sentence by Matthews, (already in an Obamistic orgasm) who proceeded to interpret the way he THINKS DeMint meant it.