Matthews on Obama's and Clinton's bowling: "Maybe that tells you something about the Democratic Party"

Summary: After playing a clip of Sen. Hillary Clinton bowling on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Chris Matthews asserted, "Well, it looks like bowlers won't have a champion in the race at all. I'm actually surprised by the fact that neither [Sen.] Barack [Obama] or Hillary have bowled much in their lives. Maybe that tells you something about the Democratic Party."

On the April 8 edition of MSNBC's Hardball, host Chris Matthews, after playing a clip of Sen. Hillary Clinton bowling on the April 7 edition of the syndicated Ellen DeGeneres Show, asserted, "Well, it looks like bowlers won't have a champion in the race at all. I'm actually surprised by the fact that neither [Sen.] Barack [Obama] or Hillary have bowled much in their lives. Maybe that tells you something about the Democratic Party."

As Media Matters for America noted, Matthews has previously suggested that the Democratic Party does not consist of "regular people," and that African-Americans and college graduates are not "regular people." During the April 1 edition of Hardball, Matthews referred to Obama's bowling performance at a March 29 campaign stop at Pleasant Valley Lanes in Altoona, Pennsylvania, and asked, "[C]an Obama woo more regular voters -- you know, the ones who actually do know how to bowl?" During a segment on that edition, Matthews asked Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO), "Let me ask you about how he -- how's he connect with regular people? Does he? Or does he only appeal to people who come from the African-American community and from the people who have college or advanced degrees?" In addition, during MSNBC's February 5 coverage of that day's primary contests, Matthews suggested to Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean that he should be concerned about the party's lack of broad appeal, noting polls showing a large number of "college graduates" and voters of a "high economic and social echelon" voting in the primaries. Matthews added, "I just wonder where regular people are in this."

Also, on the March 31 edition of Hardball, Matthews said of Obama: "[T]his gets very ethnic, but the fact that he's good at basketball doesn't surprise anybody, but the fact that he's that terrible at bowling does make you wonder."

From the April 8 edition of MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews:

MATTHEWS: So what else is new in politics? Well, on April Fool's Day, Senator Clinton challenged Senator Obama to a Pennsylvania bowl-off, after everyone watched Obama's gutter balls. With that in mind, Ellen DeGeneres gave Clinton a chance yesterday to strut her stuff. Check it out.

[begin video clip]

CLINTON: Well, you know, this is one of those stressful situations. [ball fails to hit pins] Oh! Made you look good.

DeGENERES: Yeah, thank you. That's why I like you. [ball knocks down one pin] Again, making me look good. I think you're fantastic, and I just -- just keep going, and people should decide. I think it's wrong for anyone to tell somebody -- whoever you're for, everyone has a right to vote for whoever. But to tell someone to get out, it's our vote. It's -- we're the people that should choose who our president should be.

[end video clip]

MATTHEWS: Well, it looks like bowlers won't have a champion in the race at all. I'm actually surprised by the fact that neither Barack or Hillary have bowled much in their lives. Maybe that tells you something about the Democratic Party.

—R.C.