Hardball host Chris Matthews made some bizarre comments about the potential Republican candidates for president in 2016 on Tuesday night.
Speaking to Jeanne Cummings of Bloomberg News and Republican strategist John Feehery, Matthews took a swipe at Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and suggested “he's the Republicans' John Edwards.” [See video below.]
The Hardball host never explained why in the world he would compare a man who cheated on his wife while pursuing the presidency to Senator Marco Rubio, but nevertheless the snide remark took his panelists by surprise.
While Republican John Feehery didn’t directly condemn Matthews’ unusual comparison of Edwards and Rubio, he did his best to defend the Tea Party senator:
I think he's one of the more creative thinkers on the Republican side. And he's certainly no Ted Cruz and he’s no Rand Paul. And he is that mantle of the Republican's Reaganism.
Matthews’ insulting comments directed at Rubio came after spending nearly a minute fawning over Hillary Clinton and he declared that “she has the greatest resume in the world.” He insisted that any man “has to make a pretty good case to his spouse why this person is a more reasonable prospect for president than Hillary Clinton who has the greatest resume in the world. He has to come up, this guy, and make his case. I'm telling you. This is going to be a family fight everywhere in America.”
The MSNBC host’s championing of Ms. Clinton continued by arguing that the GOP need a credible candidate to explain why they won’t vote for Hillary:
Women are going to want to vote for Hillary. The guys are going to have to come up with somebody if they don't like Hillary. If they don’t some guys do obviously, for somebody else. You can't run Rand Paul against Hillary Clinton or Ted Cruz. You have to run somebody who can beat her.
To their credit, both of Matthews’ guests did their best to calm Matthews down with Ms. Cummings arguing that despite all of his Hillary love “we aren't there yet. We don't know if Christie will survive Bridgegate. He may and that’s where Wall Street wants to go. They want to go to him. And so we'll see if he survives.”
See relevant transcript below.
MSNBC
Hardball with Chris Matthews
July 8, 2014
CHRIS MATTHEWS: I’ve got to fight with you. Here's my question. A Republican guy, a guy, has to go to his wife and say, I'm supporting this person over Hillary Clinton, who’s going to be the Democratic nominee I assume. And he has to make a pretty good case to his spouse why this person is a more reasonable prospect for president than Hillary Clinton who has the greatest resume in the world. He has to come up, this guy, and make his case. I'm telling you. This is going to be a family fight everywhere in America. Women are going to want to vote for Hillary. The guys are going to have to come up with somebody if they don't like Hillary. If they don’t some guys do obviously, for somebody else. You can't run Rand Paul against Hillary Clinton or Ted Cruz. You have to run somebody who can beat her.
JEANNE CUMMINGS: But we aren't there yet. We don't know if Christie will survive Bridgegate. He may and that’s where Wall Street wants to go. They want to go to him. And so we'll see if he survives.
MATTHEWS: That's what Bloomberg News is reporting. That’s something. They still stick with the big guy?
CUMMINGS: They want to go there.
MATTHEWS: He’s still close in the polls.
CUMMINGS: That’s right. And he's going to Iowa soon. So he's starting to get back into this arena. I mean his big personality may not sell in Iowa. We'll see. But he's still in there. And I wouldn't count him out yet.
JOHN FEEHERY: Well, what Chris Christie has, he has the fire in his belly. And that’s important. You know, Mitt Romney’s been through it. His wife has been through it. I’m not sure that she wants to do it. The other person--
MATTHEWS: She wants to be first lady. Come on?
FEEHERY: The other person is Jeb Bush. Does Jeb Bush run? That's the big if.
MATTHEWS: Do you think he's running?
FEEHERY: I don’t think so.
MATTHEWS: Do you think he’s running?
FEEHERY: But if he does, all this talk is over, the Jeb Bush. The other guy that you have to talk about is Marco Rubio. Because Rubio, all the inside beltway--
MATTHEWS: President of the United States.
FEEHERY: All the inside the beltway folks think Rubio is the Republicans' best shot.
MATTHEWS: I think he's the Republicans' John Edwards.
CUMMINGS: That's interesting.
FEEHERY: I think he's one of the more creative thinkers on the Republican side. And he's certainly no Ted Cruz and he’s no Rand Paul. And he is that mantle of the Republican's Reaganism
MATTHEWS: Okay, we'll come back in a year. I say Mitt Romney is running. You say Chris Christie is still in the game. We'll see.
