Things took a bizarre turn roughly ten minutes into Wednesday’s Hardball and, surprisingly, it wasn’t MSNBC host Chris Matthews. After discussing President Donald Trump’s feud with Denmark, the topic turned to Trump’s proposal to invite Russia back into the G-7 (making it the G-8) again when far-left PBS NewsHour correspondent Yamiche Alcindor appeared to take issue with Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the USA being played at Trump rallies.
No, that’s not a typo. She really went there. And there was more in the B-block with Alcindor kvetching about the President not listening to gun control supporters.
But first, Greenwood’s timeless classic. Matthews reacted to a clip of Trump talking about Russia and the G-7 as evidence that “sometimes he acts like they do have something on him, Yamiche, like they got picture, movies, they got something.”
Alcindor replied by connecting the Denmark and Russia stories because “all this stuff that he was talking about with Denmark, he was saying, ‘well, the reason why I’m doing this is because Obama let people disrespect America and I need to somehow get America's respect back up around the world.’”
She then brought up what she claimed to hear from Trump supporters and invoked a paraphrasing of the line “where at least I know I'm free” line from Greenwood’s 1984 song:
That’s when you talk to his supporters. They say, “oh, well, at least the people respect us again.” When you listen to his statements or when you listen to the music at his rallies, it’s like, “well, at least I'm an American, at least I'm free.” There’s this theme running through that I'm the chosen one, I'm the person who can fix all of your problems when if reality we've seen I have been talking to foreign policy experts ahead of the G-7, people are — Europeans are on edge nobody knows how to deal with President Trump, nobody understands how his foreign policy is done.
Only one word is appropriate to describe this: snowflake.
Going to the B-block and guns, Alcindor complained as if she worked for CNN instead of MSNBC and PBS when she argued that Trump’s being undemocratic by “being led by the NRA....and is essentially ignoring the will and the wants of people who have been impacted by mass shootings.”
While tragic, acting on emotion and ignoring mass shooting victims who aren’t for mass gun confiscation isn’t sound public policy. See Parkland as an example of that split in press coverage. And there's no evidence in many of these mass shootings that expanded background checks would have prevented them from taking place (e.g. Sandy Hook, Virginia Beach).
Nonetheless, the taxpayer-funded journalist continued to sound like Shannon Watts (click “expand”):
You know exactly what Wayne LaPierre wants. Why don't you want to go back and call those people up from the hospital and ask them what they want. The people I talked to want universal background checks. These are people who are saying we own guns. We understand the Second Amendment, but we want people to not be able to privately sell and buy guns and we don’t want people to buy guys on Facebook or online without a background check which is what people can do right now. So the President I think is — he didn't want to answer the question, obviously, I repeatedly put the question to him and I think what we see is the President not wanting to acknowledge that he is being led by the NRA right now.
To be blunt, it’s another reason to #DefundPBS!
New York Times columnist Michelle Goldberg ghoulishly claimed that the President doesn’t care about “public safety” of the American people, but it was Matthews who assisted Alcindor as co-conductor on this crazy train by comparing a clear, Constitutional right to consuming alcohol.
He also lobbied for disarming every American until, like with alcohol, they’re 21 years old (click “expand”):
You know when you go to a convenience store and you’re under 21, they ask for your I.D Michelle, I mean, we have restrictions on freedoms. You’re allowed to drink in this country, but there are restrictions. You have a right to drink whatever you want, booze, whatever you want. That’s a right. It’s a natural human right. Drink what you want, eat what you want. But there are laws about access to it that have to deal with public safety, like we don't want 17-year-old kids or 18-year-old kids driving around drunk. Thought — why don't we think of guns that way. It's a right. You have a right to a gun, but you got to be 21 to get one. You’re going to have to get a license to have a rifle at home.
If that’s the case, perhaps Matthews should consider also wanting to raise the voting age to 21. Good luck with that, chief.
To see the relevant transcript from MSNBC’s Hardball on August 21, click “expand.”
MSNBC’s Hardball
August 21, 2019
7:09 p.m. EasternCHRIS MATTHEWS: As I mentioned at the same time, he's snubbing a close ally, Trump is again calling to be reinstated to the Group of Seven. Russia used to be a member, but their invasion of Crimea got them injected back if 2014. Well, as Trump tells it, however, President Obama is to blame.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: It's come up, should we put Russia back in? We spend a lot of time talking about Russia at those meetings and they're not there. I think it would be a good thing if Russia were there. [SCREEN WIPE] They were taken out because Putin outsmarted on Crimea, on the red line on other things, totally outsmarted Obama. Obama was upset. They took them out. I think Russia should be a part of it because we're looking for world peace.
MATTHEWS: You know, sometimes he acts like they do have something on him, Yamiche. Like they got picture, movies, they got something. Why is he their agent? Why is he working for Russia again?
YAMICHE ALCINDOR: Obviously, the White House would say, take issue with that statement and say —
MATTHEWS: Well, what is he doing right there? I got the tape. He's out there.
ALCINDOR: — but of course, what his two favorite topics which kind of meshed together on the White House lawn today when I was out there was Obama and Russia. All this stuff that he was talking about with Denmark, he was saying, “well, the reason why I’m doing this is because Obama let people disrespect America and I need to somehow get America's respect back up around the world.” That’s when you talk to his supporters. They say, “oh, well, at least the people respect us again.” When you listen to his statements or when you listen to the music at his rallies, it’s like, “well, at least I'm an American, at least I'm free.” There’s this theme running through that I'm the chosen one, I'm the person who can fix all of your problems when if reality we've seen I have been talking to foreign policy experts ahead of the G-7, people are — Europeans are on edge nobody knows how to deal with President Trump, nobody understands how his foreign policy is done.
(....)
7:24 p.m. Eastern
MATTHEWS: What do you make of this? What’s the — he’s very consoling for a few days and then.
ALCINDOR: He doesn't want to acknowledge that he is being led by the NRA to come up with a stance on gun legislation and is essentially ignoring the will and the wants of people who have been impacted by mass shootings. I was thinking about on the lawn. Okay, you’re talking to Wayne LaPierre. You know exactly what Wayne LaPierre wants. Why don't you want to go back and call those people up from the hospital and ask them what they want. The people I talked to want universal background checks. These are people who are saying we own guns. We understand the Second Amendment, but we want people to not be able to privately sell and buy guns and we don’t want people to buy guys on Facebook or online without a background check which is what people can do right now. So the President I think is — he didn't want to answer the question, obviously, I repeatedly put the question to him and I think what we see is the President not wanting to acknowledge that he is being led by the NRA right now.
MATTHEWS: You know when you go to a convenience store and you’re under 21, they ask for your I.D Michelle, I mean, we have restrictions on freedoms. You’re allowed to drink in this country, but there are restrictions. You have a right to drink whatever you want, booze, whatever you want. That’s a right. It’s a natural human right. Drink what you want, eat what you want. But there are laws about access to it that have to deal with public safety, like we don't want 17-year-old kids or 18-year-old kids driving around drunk. Thought — why don't we think of guns that way. It's a right.
MICHELLE GOLDBERG: Well, most people do think — look.
MATTHEWS: You have a right to a gun, but you got to be 21 to get one. You’re going to have to get a license to have a rifle at home.
GOLDBERG: I think most people do think of guns that way, but, look, I mean, can — I also want to pause for a second on how degenerate is for the president to sit there and boast falsely at that, that the victims of mass shootings love him, but beyond that, you know, I think that public safety is not just a concern for this man. What he cares about is keeping together the remains of his base because he has nothing else to offer the majority of people in this country who voted against him and has never supported him. The NRA has never been as weak as it is right now. It's under multiple investigations. It's faced with all sorts of financial scandals. It's losing lots of money. If ever there was a time that a president could stand up to the NRA and do something that has pretty much consensus support in American politics, it would be now, but Donald Trump is never going to be able to do that. He is never, ever, ever going to put the interests and safety of the American people above his short-term political calculations.
MATTHEWS: Okay. It’s new year next year. Next two years. Will there be any gun legislation this year?
JONATHAN ALLEN: I don't think so.
ALCINDOR: No and I think it's telling when the President talked to people who ran for their lives — like I spoke to Anthony Reynolds in Ohio who was 10 feet away from someone with an assault rifle and watched people lose their life. He was forever changed and said “I’m going to be calling my — my lawmakers. I’m going to be moving for gun legislation.” The president went to the hospital, spoke to those same people, and he took away that they love him and nothing about gun legislation.
