MSNBC's Chris Matthews and Pat Buchanan got into quite a heated debate on Monday's "Hardball."
At issue was the battle of the debt ceiling with Matthews calling Tea Partiers opposed to raising it "crazy protesters" and telling his guest, "You want to join" them (video follows with transcript and commentary):
CHRIS MATTHEWS, HOST: As my hero and your nemesis Winston Churchill once said, “I refuse to be non-partisan between the fire brigade and the fire.” The fire brigade in this case are the grown-ups. People like McConnell, and John McCain, and Lindsey Graham, and John Boehner and the Democrats. They’re trying to put out the fire. I'm not saying the Pelosi crowd aren’t trying to win their side, but generally the grown-ups say, “Stop fighting over this, let’s protect our nation's economy from default," and you don't want to play that game.
PAT BUCHANAN: Chris.
MATTHEWS: You want to join the crazy protesters.
BUCHANAN: That is a terrible thing to say. You are saying the motivation of the Tea Party is to damage the country. Whatever you say about these people, it's unpopular what they're doing. They’re getting beat up. They’re standing by their principles.
MATTHEWS: No, their leaders are telling them there won’t be default.
DAVID CORN, MOTHER JONES: They are willing to see the economy suffer.
MATTHEWS: Their crazed leaders them, people like Bachmann and Steve King…
MATTHEWS: …are saying, “Oh, you don't have to worry about default, because there won't really be any.” That's the problem. They’re being disillusioned.
CORN: They’re playing fire with other people's lives.
BUCHANAN: These are Tea Party patriots.
CORN: Prices will be paid for this, but not by them.
MATTHEWS: Okay, Pat, otherwise known as Mrs. O’Leary’s cow. Thanks for joining us. David, just kidding, of course. You are a patriot in your own strange way, Pat Buchanan.
As NewsBusters previously reported, Matthews' reference to Mrs. O'Leary's cow was factually and historically inaccurate.
But what would you expect from a man so in the tank for Democrats that he's willing to admit when one of them gives him a tingle up his leg?
