On Wednesday’s The Beat with Ari Melber, MSNBC host Ari Melber joined with former Obama pollster Cornell Belcher and Democratic strategist Aisha Mills in gushing over a stump speech made by Barack Obama on the behalf of Joe Biden on Tuesday. Shedding any guise of objectivity, Melber praised Obama for being “blistering and strong” and Mills bizarrely enthused that Obama is “forever POTUS and he makes us feel good.”
Melber began the segment by excitedly labeling Obama as “blistering and strong”:
As we watch him there working the stage in a very 2020 style appearance, we can reflect on what we just heard, a far starker and some might say more partisan Barack Obama than usual, but he had the evidence and the receipts, as they say. We see him brandishing a mask that he puts back on there. We saw him wearing the mask earlier as he went to a community center event. Barack Obama making the argument clear and repeatedly from that stage in Philadelphia that he views President Trump as a failure, as a quote, “crazy uncle,” as a person who, quote, “emboldens racists,” as a person who tweets conspiracy theories about Osama Bin Laden, who messes up, quote, “everything he's inherited from his own personal wealth to the Obama-Biden economy.” Now we’re watching here Barack Obama returning to the tent. You see people gathered around that area and people still in their cars. We’re going to keep an eye on that whole scene. But this was a blistering and strong version of President Obama making the case against Trump and for his former running mate Joe Biden.
Melber introduced the former Obama stooge, Belcher, as the “perfect guest” and asked him if Obama’s speech “was sharper and stronger” than other speeches he has made this year. This perfectly set up Belcher to lavish praise on the “stateman-like” Obama:
And look, this was vintage Barack Obama. I mean, he's so good, to say the -- the obvious. And I -- I think what is really fitting here is, you know, the philosophies between the two campaigns can't be any more evident. You know, Barack Obama talked about how the decency of America, he talked about the possibility of -- of change and what -- what's possible if you vote for Joe Biden. And on -- on the other side, you have Republicans and Donald -- Donald Trump talking about if you don't vote for Donald Trump, the suburbs are going to be on fire and your neighborhood going to be flooded with immigrants. I mean, the -- the -- the philosophical difference between these campaigns and these two ways of thinking can't -- can’t be any clearer. But -- but you also see someone who has the best political brand in America right now and Barack Obama's numbers have grown since he's left the White House. He's -- he’s a larger, you know, statesman-like figure today than when he left the White House, especially in lieu of Donald Trump.
Melber continued to enthuse over the speech by saying that he was “spellbound” and hyping Obama describing Trump as “not a real president.”
Mills then launched into unashamed gushing over “our POTUS forever” and bashing of Trump, boasting that Obama's such “a great orator” and viewers were “reminded about the fact that he's extremely popular.” She added that she wasn't rhetorically donning her “analyst” hat because she was so “jazzed” and “stoked right now in a way that I hadn't been throughout most of this election cycle.”
She continued with even more admiring words for MSNBC's dearly beloved:
He also put on his boxing gloves and wasn't afraid to come at Donald Trump and to call him kooky and a lunatic. And we all, you know, got the vibe that he doesn’t, you know, like the guy… I feel the energy from him. I'm glad that he took off the gloves. I felt that he was -- he -- he went harder than we have seen him go, I think, in some time, just making the case plain about why Donald Trump is trash. And I -- I thought that people, you know, would really resonate with that. And then, of course, I mean, he's -- he’s popular because he's cool. There's a cool factor to him too.
At least she admitted that she’s not an analyst as salivating over Obama never gets old for the leftists at MSDNC.
Because this segment was part of a “special,” there were no advertisers. For those interested in learning more about the MRC's Conservatives Fight Back campaign, go here.
Read the full October 21st transcript here:
MSNBC's The Beat with Ari Melber
10/21/20
6:29:37 PMARI MELBER: Former President Barack Obama delivering a blistering speech here. We're watching him continue to step around the stage of what was a drive-in rally, the horns you heard were the horns from cars assembled in this COVID-safe event in Philadelphia, the second of two events that Obama led today. As we watch him there working the stage in a very 2020-style appearance, we can reflect on what we just heard, a far starker and some might say more partisan Barack Obama than usual, but he had the evidence and the receipts, as they say. We see him brandishing a mask that he puts back on there. We saw him wearing the mask earlier as he went to a community center event. Barack Obama making the argument clear and repeatedly from that stage in Philadelphia that he views President Trump as a failure, as a “crazy uncle,” as a person who, “emboldens racists,” as a person who tweets conspiracy theories about Osama Bin Laden, who messes up, “everything he's inherited from his own personal wealth to the Obama-Biden economy.” Now we’re watching here Barack Obama returning to the tent. You see people gathered around that area and people still in their cars. We’re going to keep an eye on that whole scene. But this was a blistering and strong version of President Obama making the case against Trump and for his former running mate Joe Biden. As part of our special coverage here, you are watching The Beat with Ari Melber. I want to turn to our first two guests. Cornell Belcher is a fitting expert on this night. He was Barack Obama's victorious 2012 pollster and Democratic strategist Aisha Mills. And for those joining us, we have other guests lined up throughout the hour, presenting a whole range of views. But Cornell, as someone who worked with President Obama, what did you see out on that stage tonight? And did it strike your ear as a sharper and stronger version of the case he's been making this year?
CORNELL BELCHER (FORMER OBAMA POLLSTER): I was a part of the -- the polling team for '08 and -- and ‘12, a very strong team. And look, this was vintage Barack Obama. I mean, he's so good, to say the -- the obvious. And I -- I think what is really fitting here is, you know, the philosophies between the two campaigns can't be any more evident. You know, Barack Obama talked about how the decency of America, he talked about the possibility of -- of change and what -- what's possible if you vote for Joe Biden. And on -- on the other side, you have Republicans and Donald -- Donald Trump talking about if you don't vote for Donald Trump, the suburbs are going to be on fire and your neighborhood going to be flooded with immigrants. I mean, the -- the -- the philosophical difference between these campaigns and these two ways of thinking can't -- can’t be any clearer. But -- but you also see someone who has the best political brand in America right now and Barack Obama's numbers have grown since he's left the White House. He's -- he’s a larger, you know, statesman-like figure today than when he left the White House, especially in lieu of Donald Trump.
MELBER: Yeah.
BELCHER: And so the bread of Barack Obama and Michelle Obama is the best political brand in -- in the country and no one can speak to those -- those -- those five to six million Obama voters who sat out 2016 better than Barack Obama can.
MELBER: Well, Cornell, since you mentioned the numbers, let me have you build on that. We’re looking at again, this is fresh footage we just got today. Here are the numbers. Trump at 39, Biden at 46. Better, but not winning over the majority of the country yet. Barack Obama standing tall as the most recent president at 58%. Couple that with what they're trying to do tonight in Pennsylvania. Why? For folks at home trying to keep track, what matters, so much hyperbole. You need Pennsylvania if you’re Donald Trump, right? It’s a big state. Obama won by 10 points. He's there for a reason, Cornell, tonight.
BELCHER: No, he’s there -- he's there to speak to that -- that -- that base of Obama voters who sat out in 20 -- in 2016 but also, we talked about this before Ari, those young voters who protested their -- their vote in - in 2016, who broke their party in 2016 because they were rejecting sort of the politics of both Hillary as well as -- as -- as -- as Donald -- as Donald -- as Donald Trump. You know, that Obama coalition -- rebuilding that Obama coalition and expanding on that Obama coalition is key for Democrats going in -- going into 2020.
MELBER: Aisha, take a listen to what we just heard. We were really watching spellbound and picking some of the key moments. And I’ll say as someone, who as part of my job, like both of yours, we hear these speeches and even good orators of -- of which I think Obama is in that category whether people like his politics or not, not every speech is amazing. It felt like Barack Obama came in and said in those two events today but particularly this one to Pennsylvania, you were with me before and we need you more than ever. And he's speaking obviously to P.A. and the whole country but, boy, it would help Joe Biden if they could lock this up. And he made the -- the claim here, I want you to see it, that Donald Trump's not a real president. Take a look.
(Cuts to video)
BARACK OBAMA: He hasn't shown any interest in doing the work or helping anybody but himself and his friends or treating the presidency like a reality show that he can use to get attention. And, by the way, even then his TV ratings are -- are down. So you know that upsets him.
(Cuts to live)
MELBER: Aisha?
AISHA MILLS (DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST): So to Cornell's point, I got to say not only is this man a great orator, we're reminded about the fact that he's extremely popular because he's our forever POTUS and he makes us feel good. I'm actually just with my hat on as a voter and not as an analyst, I’m stoked right now in a way that I hadn't been throughout most of this election cycle. I'm -- I’m jazzed up. I feel like he riled up the crowd in a way that reminded us all the things that he did. He popped his collar and said, look, Joe and I accomplished things. He also put on his boxing gloves and wasn't afraid to come at Donald Trump and to call him kooky and a lunatic. And we all, you know, got the vibe that he doesn’t, you know, like the guy. And what's really critical about him doing this and being so enigmatic in Philly is that Pennsylvania is critical. We only lost as Democrats -- Hillary Clinton only lost by less than a percentage point in Pennsylvania. That's just about 44,000 votes that she -- that was the difference-maker there. So if he can animate some -- some -- some folks -- black folks in particular, because today he had a racial justice forum, to come out in Philly and get an extra 10,000 people to show up at the polls, that tips the scale. So it's a really big deal to me. I feel the energy from him. I'm glad that he took off the gloves. I felt that he was -- he -- he went harder than we have seen him go, I think, in some time, just making the case plain about why Donald Trump is trash. And I -- I thought that people, you know, would really resonate with that. And then, of course, I mean, he's -- he’s popular because he's cool. There's a cool factor to him too.
