Laughable: Chris Matthews Proclaims He's 'Centrist'
Here's a joke for you this Tuesday morning. Did you know that hyperpartisan Democrat Chris Matthews sees himself as a "centrist?" In an aside during a conversation with MSNBC contributor Joan Walsh, the leg-thrilling pundit emphatically claimed the moderate label for himself, stating that he could understand President Obama being criticized by both liberals and conservatives on the Keystone Pipeline.
"Take it from a centrist. I know what it's like," Matthews proclaimed. Video, transcript and commentary below the break.
A transcript from the exchange which occurred on the March 22, 2012 edition of "Hardball:"
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Politically, I see the president in a problem area here. To be halfway for something endangers you, it makes you enemies on both sides.
JOAN WALSH (guffawing): Right. It's a--
MATTHEWS: Take it from a centrist. I know what it's like.
WALSH: Yeah, you get kicked from both sides. You know, some days if we're centrists we say, 'Well we must be doing something right, we've got everybody mad at us,' but sometimes when everybody's mad at you, maybe you're a little bit wrong. And I think the president has a very tricky, tricky position here.
It's very classic Barack Obama. He wants to be the man in the middle. He wants to be the man of moderation. He wants to split the baby (not literally) and he wants to come up with a compromise that works. I just don't think it's possible here.
Beyond the fact that he has himself stated that he has "made a commitment to covering politics in a liberal way," Matthews's actions have belied any claims to centrism:
- He began his career in journalism writing articles for an organization run by the very liberal Ralph Nader
- He wrote speeches for Jimmy Carter
- He worked on the Capitol Hill staffs of four Democratic members of Congress
- He ran for a U.S. House seat in 1974 as a Democrat
- He encouraged talk about the possibility of him running for Senate in 2010 as a Democrat, secretly being in communication with then-president-elect Barack Obama's top staff, trying to recruit them
And of course, all the preposterous left-wing drivel that we've chronicled him saying over the years certainly isn't the kind of thing that a conservative or a moderate would go about spouting.
Matthews's comments here remind one of something that FBN anchor John Stossel said about his time working for ABC, the unfortunate reality is that people like Chris Matthews are so utterly surrounded by liberalism, they think it's commonsense moderation:
"Anyone who disagrees is seen as not just wrong, but selfish and cruel. Leftist thinking is simply the culture I swim in. More safety regulation? Who could not want that? Everyone I know wants that. When I question other reporters about bias, I get blank stares. It's like asking fish about water. 'What water?' say the fish."
Chris Matthews is firmly ensconced in his fishbowl.
Quick aside: Walsh's statement that Obama is trying to craft some sort of compromise on the Keystone Pipeline is absurd considering that the campaign appearance he did in Oklahoma a few days ago was to tout the approval of a project which had already received approval long ago. There literally is nothing that Obama could do to "expedite" the process since the work will be done by private companies and is being paid for by private companies.
The only decision over which Obama had any sort of influence is the one that he made to deny approval for the pipeline running from Canada into the United States, a permit request which had already been approved by the State Department. If he were truly concerned about "expediting" anything, he would have simply not disturbed the normal process which had already been completed.
Obama's attempt to claim "centrism" on this issue is indeed "classic Barack Obama" but not in the way that Walsh imagines. It's classic Obama--taking a far left position and trying to pretend that it's moderate.
- Matthew Sheffield's blog
- Login to post comments
Comments
I have always viewed him as a 'centrist'
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 11:54am.
as the pivot man in a Chinese circle.......
oh... I can't say that here....
never mind....
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?
RE: Your bumber sticker...
Submitted by DumbCanuck on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 11:56am.
...should read "Obama Lite!"
"There... Are... Four... Lights!"
nah, there's not much
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:02pm.
nah, there's not much difference between them other than skin color.
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?
I've said it before...
Submitted by DumbCanuck on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 11:54am.
It seems to be an inherent trait to being a liberal. Everybody that agrees with you is reasonable and moderate. My brother is exactly the same way. He too thinks of himself as a centrist, even after I pointed out that the party he voted for in our last federal election are socialists! He claimed that he never knew that, then attacked me for smearing his party that way.
Then I asked him if he saw his favorite party's constitution? He couldn't, because only members of the party can see their constitution! "Why is that?" I asked. Because I HAVE seen the NDP constitution! They ARE socialists! Hello!!!
I don't think he'll ever make that claim in front of my face ever again.
Typical Liberal arrogance to believe that everybody agrees with their views, and if somebody doesn't, they're extreme radicals, as my brother LOVES to point out about me.
"There... Are... Four... Lights!"
Walsh and Matthews mutally confirm their "centricity"
Submitted by Galvanic on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:08pm.
I think they really believe it. This is what former CBS News correspondent and frequent O'Reilly guest Bernard Goldberg was talking about in his best selling book Bias back in the '90s. According to Bernie, it's not that the media sits down with the goal of espousing the liberal perspective; it's that they honestly see their politics as 'centrist' and hence anything they produce/deliver is objective and fair and thus inherently centrist.
A classis example given by Goldberg was an ABC News telecast of one of Clinton's State of the Union addresses. As the senior members of the Senate and House entered the chamber, Peter Jennings identified them for the audience. Virtually all Republicans were described as "the conservative --- " or the "very conservative ----" while not one Democrat was introduced as "the liberal --" or "very liberal --". Not one. Not even liberal icon Teddy Kennedy earned the adjective that night. To Jennings, they weren't liberals -- they were centrists like him.
It seems
Submitted by fivestring_assassin on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:00pm.
the one thing we all agree on is that he's a douche
Even the lunatic lefties seems to be tossing him under the bus
LOL. Yeah, and he's also heterosexual.
Submitted by SickofLibs on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:03pm.
.
Well...maybe...
Submitted by c5then on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:04pm.
Compared to Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro. He may be more of a centist compared to all the others who work at MSNBC too.
Madison and Jefferson and Franklin built a Republic - Roberts killed it!
I like to keep lefties
Submitted by jkwtrading on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:14pm.
I like to keep lefties basic..cockroaches all look alike to me..
Riiiiight, Chris
Submitted by capav on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:06pm.
You also said that you "root for the underdog" while discussing Santorum vs Romney. Let's see which underdog you root for in the election. (I'm guessing the underdog is not gonna be Obama!)
Then so is Rush.
Submitted by NCfairandbalanced on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:12pm.
Then so is Rush. From the opposite direction maybe. But both assumptions are laughable.
Just out of idle curiosity...
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:15pm.
Would you care to provide ANY instance of Rush Limbaugh claiming to be a "centrist"?
Rush is unabashedly PROUD of being a Conservative, and never flinches from defending his Conservative viewpoints.
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?
Gee
Submitted by texastommy on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 2:29pm.
You missed the point.
No.
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 3:27pm.
Your position was the comparison between Rush and the ovebloated retard claiming to be a 'centrist'.
Rush never claims to be anything other than a Conservative.
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?
Apparently you missed my
Submitted by NCfairandbalanced on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 3:33pm.
Apparently you missed my sarcasm. My point is that Rush is no more a centrist than Matthews. Of course you're right about Rush. But if he made such a claim, it would be silly. Same with Matthews, who...uh...actually did!
No sarcasm here!
The bubble you live in Chris
Submitted by jkwtrading on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:11pm.
The bubble you live in Chris has a clear view to all who see it.
hopefully you will lift away and fly into never ever land.
If he's centrist, then I'd
Submitted by Darks Shadow Show on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:11pm.
If he's centrist, then I'd hate to see a true leftist!
He hosted Rush Limbaugh show once...
Submitted by gopcongress on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:13pm.
Chris Matthews hosted the Rush Limbaugh radio show once, so that balances everything else out. He's a centrist.
"The news and truth are not the same thing." -Walter Lippmann (1889-1974) FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER
Once.
Submitted by JeffC... on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:24pm.
Once.
gop
Submitted by Seashell on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:28pm.
Wow! I actually remember listening to that broadcast. You know Chris actually used to be OK to listen to. I remember watching his show back in the 90's during the Clinton/Lewinsky stuff. He was fair. I guess all that was just for show. His true colors eventually came out.
Interesting point. I
Submitted by NCfairandbalanced on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 3:37pm.
Interesting point. I remember when I used to think his show "Hardball" was a good name because he WAS tough even on libs.
I could be wrong, but I think the thing that got him was Bush v. Gore in 2000. It was all downhill from there. Maybe sooner?
It probably started when he went over to MSNBC and...
Submitted by jawebster1 on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 3:45am.
they decided to compete with Fox News as the Liberal version of Fox News.
Instead of being "Fair and Balanced" like Fox News, MSNBC decided to go "Unfair and Unbalanced" and that is why Fox is succeeding and they are failing.
Long before Fox News and MSNBC, he hosted a talk show...
Submitted by jawebster1 on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 3:39am.
on CNBC in the evenings. I watched that show faithfully because in those days, he went after Bill Clinton just like he goes after Conservatives today.
The difference is, he was on target then, but almost always off target now.
I figure he has changed because his audience has changed. Fox News would never hire him, but if he were on Fox, you'd see a different Chris Matthews.
I listened to that show and he did a fairly good job...
Submitted by jawebster1 on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 3:24am.
at least until the very end when he said something like, he agreed with Rush on very few things, but disagreed with him on a whole lot of things.
I knew when I heard that, he would never again be filling in for Rush and so far, I'm right.
I say he did a fairly good job, because in those days he wasn't the Chris Matthews we Conservatives have all grown to know and abhor.
JW
Submitted by Seashell on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 9:19am.
I remember Matthews making that comment as well and thinking at the time how unnecessary and rude it was. That is when my radar went up about him.
Chris Matthews is firmly ensconced in his fishbowl.
Submitted by Ruths husband Ben on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:41pm.
"Chris Matthews is firmly ensconced in his fishbowl."
Matthew, that is a great line. Just thought I'd tell you.
Is there anything...
Submitted by jdripper on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 12:47pm.
that Chrissie say which isn't laughable?
Jack
~You're one to talk
Submitted by Wrathful Brunette on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 2:05pm.
You left the thread so fast, Jack.
Lie, ineigle, obfuscate
Submitted by Slyrr on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 1:46pm.
Liberal leftist guide: Lie, inveigle, obfuscate. When speaking on any issue, lie. If that doesn't work, lie again. When that fails, continue to lie and mock the people who are calling you out as 'unenlightened'.
I just want to know how this
Submitted by WarEagle66 on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 2:29pm.
I just want to know how this "Centrist" addresses the $1,000,000 BOUNTY put on an American Citizen by the New Black Panthers....
How can Eric Holder NOT come out and condemn this?
That's an easy one, Auburn
Submitted by Blonde on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 2:48pm.
Holder gave the NBP's blanket amnesty after the voter intimidation thing in Philly. They are now free to act with impunity.
Handy Reference Guide to Obama's Gaffes and Goofs ~ Currently Numbering 200 (and Counting)
Uhh...
Submitted by texastommy on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 3:13pm.
Maybe it's Holder's money?
Wait, he's a liberal, so he never does anything with his own funds. It must be a federal grant.
a mexican drug cartel placed a million dollar bounty
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 3:35pm.
on Sheriff Joe Arpaio and neither holder or obama has mentioned it.
A REAL President or Attorney General OT a Secretary of State would have had the head of mexico on the phone raising hell over it.
But, we have a bunch of racist hate mongers playing politics and don't care much for the RULE OF LAW when the LAW interferes with their agenda.
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?
I had just nearly stopped laughing from when,
Submitted by greggy on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 3:13pm.
several months ago, Chrissie proclaimed himself to be a libertarian (!!!) on the Charlie Rose show. When an incredulous Charlie Rose asked him on what possible grounds could he claim to be a libertarian, Matthews looked a little chagrined and all he could say was, "Ha!" Which isn't exactly an explanation for such a bizzarre claim.
But perhaps Jon Stewart can provide us with an explanation, for Matthews' claims of being a "libertarian" and a "centrist":
"Chris Matthews is about one glass of scotch away from being Ron Burgundy"
MAD
Submitted by jackl92 on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 3:39pm.
Mr Thrill Up His Leg also has a house on Mars.
jackl92
Centrist?
Submitted by oldfart on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 5:11pm.
I guess between Pol Pot and Joseph Stalin.
What A Joke
Submitted by DaMama on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 5:28pm.
Matthews a Centerist? Give me a break. The guy is a leftist liberal who gets twitterpated when he hears Obama talk. What a fraud.
Tingles, and Maher, and Fat Boy Moore, and Schultzie
Submitted by Gman0208 on Tue, 03/27/2012 - 8:03pm.
really are centrists. Just ask any other libtard out there who listens to them. All 12 will tell you so.
"I do believe in gun control, that's why I use BOTH hands."
DEMs out of my checkbook, Republicans out of my bedroom.
The only thing centrist about Chris Matthews is the...
Submitted by jawebster1 on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 3:06am.
"buttcrack" up his rear end.
Sick minds think alike,
Submitted by killa37 on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 3:16am.
Sick minds think alike, Jim.................I was going to say 'heinous'............which rhymes with 'anus'!!!
Yes, I hesitated to say what I said, but that was the only...
Submitted by jawebster1 on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 3:50am.
thing that came to mind when I tried to put Chris Matthews and the word "centrist" together.
Matthews is center left. He has always been center left.
Submitted by Jer on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 4:13am.
True [as Matt Sheffield notes]...
He began his career in journalism writing articles for an organization run by the very liberal Ralph Nader
He wrote speeches for Jimmy Carter
He worked on the Capitol Hill staffs of four Democratic members of Congress
He ran for a U.S. House seat in 1974 as a Democrat
He encouraged talk about the possibility of him running for Senate in 2010 as a Democrat, secretly being in communication with then-president-elect Barack Obama's top staff, trying to recruit them
BUT...
Matthews also was once a fierce critic of Clinton and not a particular fan of Gore. He was an admirer of McCain and Giuliani, and voted for and supported George W. Bush early in his presidency. More recently the "lefty" aspect of his centrism has become more pronounced--as well as his partisanship--as his employer's programming has drifted further left.
Jer
Tingles
Submitted by sngnsgt on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 10:21am.
Blither, blither, blither.
Matthews is a centrist alright -
Submitted by RealVet on Wed, 03/28/2012 - 4:05pm.
- he's the head assclown right in the middle of the failing 3-ring circus known as MSNBC.
matthews a centrist?
Submitted by damifinoNB on Thu, 03/29/2012 - 12:44am.
hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha..oh crap,I havent laughed so hard since I saw Lawrence O'Donnell lose an argument with a chair...
I'm assuming that it was a
Submitted by Willis_Leon_Johnson on Mon, 04/02/2012 - 3:29pm.
I'm assuming that it was a folding chair?
End 'gun violence in America' - Require training and MANDATORY "Shall Carry" by every Citizen.
If harry reid is the best person to lead the senate, what does that say about the other 99 senators?