Matthews to Giuliani: "I've been one of the troubadours for you out there in terms of your prospects"
SUMMARY: On MSNBC's January 19 primary coverage, Chris Matthews told Rudy Giuliani: "You know, Mayor, for months now, I think I've been one of the troubadours for you out there in terms of your prospects. I have always seen the Giuliani advantage in a party that treasures leadership." Matthews has a longstanding pattern of heaping praise on the former New York City mayor.
During MSNBC's January 19 coverage of the Nevada caucuses and the South Carolina Republican primary, Hardball host Chris Matthews interviewed Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani, telling him: "You know, Mayor, for months now, I think I've been one of the troubadours for you out there in terms of your prospects. I have always seen the Giuliani advantage in a party that treasures leadership." In stating that he has "been one of the troubadours" for Giuliani and that he has "always seen the Giuliani advantage in a party that treasures leadership," Matthews continued a longstanding pattern of heaping praise on the former New York City mayor.
On the November 6, 2007, edition of Hardball, Matthews declared Giuliani "the person with the best shot to win the Republican nomination" Later, Matthews asserted, "You know why I've been saying this guy looks good for a long time -- looks like a potential winner? Because I've been talking to a lot of people in the South -- guys that go to lunches in the South, not necessarily church-y people, just secular Republicans -- they hear about lower taxes, law and order, they like him." He added, "They can't spell his name down there, some people, but they love the idea he is a tough, kick-butt policeman, basically, in New York, a prosecutor." Matthews also stated, "Rudy is this tough, kick-butt cop from New York. You know he's not a nice guy. You know he can be an SOB, but maybe that's what you want on the subway at 3 o'clock in the morning." He continued, "Maybe that's what people feel like in their heads right now. It is 3 o'clock in the morning, and we want a tough guy on that subway with us, right?" On the March 1, 2007, edition of Hardball, Matthews similarly asserted that Southerners "can't spell his name necessarily, but they know Rudy was a hero."
On October 4, 2007, Matthews professed: "I'm pretty independent, in terms of the two parties," adding, "I have been just as tough on Bill Clinton and [Sen.] Hillary [Rodham Clinton (D-NY)] and Rudy and the whole bunch of them." In order to ascertain whether this claim is true, Media Matters for America examined every evaluative remark Matthews made about either Giuliani or Hillary Clinton on Hardball during the months of September, October, and November 2007. The results demonstrated that Matthews has been particularly friendly to Rudy Giuliani and extremely hostile toward Hillary Clinton. Matthews made 10 negative remarks about Clinton for every negative remark he made about Giuliani and nearly three times as many positive remarks about the former New York City mayor as about Clinton. The ratio of positive to negative remarks was 3.5-to-1 for Giuliani, but 1-to-8.2 for Clinton.
Matthews also twice said in 2007 that Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) "deserves to be president."
From the 6 p.m. ET hour of MSNBC's coverage of the January 19 Nevada caucuses and the South Carolina Republican primary:
MATTHEWS: You know, Mayor, for months now, I think I've been one of the troubadours for you out there in terms of your prospects. I have always seen the Giuliani advantage in a party that treasures leadership. The old line is, "Democrats fall in love; Republicans fall in line," and I keep waiting for that to happen. Can you benefit from a continued failure of the party to find a leader until they get to Florida?
A thing of shreds and patches,
Of ballads, songs and snatches,
And dreamy lullaby!
My catalogue is long,
Through every passion ranging,
And to your humours changing
I tune my supple song!
I tune my supple song!
Whereas your allegiences are worn on your sleeve, Blogspot (which might be the only thing one could say positively about your presence here), Matthews pretends to be, dare I say it, "fair and balanced". He, of course, is not. MMFA is pointing out the inconsistency.
That's so what.
That's what.
Well in the novel Renfield does turn on Count D. Don't see Chris fullfilling that part of the narative.
Must say your most rational post so far CD, bad tempered, but rational.
SAVE DEMOCRACY, VOTE FOR A DEMOCRAT!!
He has to wait for a state to compete in that has enough New Yorkers to give him a chance, that means by the time Florida rolls around will his local campaigning trump the national attention of a Romney, of McCain?
Who cares. Nobody's independant is going to the polls for Romney, or Giuliani, but McCain will see his share of independant voters, just not enough to make him a national candidate. The national polls are so skewed they can't be considered.
The question becomes, will America vote for a Pro-Iraqi War candidate that has to sell spending $12-$15 billion dollars a month for decades, permanent tax cuts for the rich, and then take this straight talk while in a recession that was fueled by oil companies that have been the only benefactor of the Iraqi War as they gouged Americans blood?
When the Republicans loose big in November '08, we will see a scurry of political opperatives jumping to tell their story to a prosecutor that will be simpathetic before the Democrat gets sworn in, it will be like a burning ship filled with rats. The Real Republican Pandora's box will be revealed in a way that will stunn Americans like Watergate never could.
I pray that a strong minded, principled President will be elected, and prosecute every crime of this Bush Administration from top to bottom. The argument that this will be to devisive has been used up by the Republican Administrations since Nixon's Pardon, Reagan's pardons of the Iran-Contra affairs, the GHWB Noriega ordeal, the constant excuses used to make prosecution seem political, not just. We will not have the "respect for the rule of law" that is required to maintain democracy in America unless these crimes are dealt with by the "rule of law" and not political favors of Republicans.
Happy Thoughts;
Dan Grady
"I pray that a strong minded, principled President will be elected, and prosecute every crime of this Bush Administration from top to bottom."-DG
And maybe some changes in, or changes of mind of the congressional leadership.
Well, er, ahh...
Ya think Tweety'd be singing the same song if Hizzhonor's wife were running?
Somehow, I think we would and I don't think we'd hear a peep from Tweety about Rudy repeatedly dickin' around.
Okay for Bubba and HRC, not so for America's Mayor and his latest.
Well this must be the week Matthews is finally coming clean ;-)
First he admits he was too harsh on Hillary. Now he admits he's been a troubadour for Rudy.
Anyone who watches Hardball [I do] has heard Matthews savage Hillary & swoon like a love sick puppy over Rudy.
I'd say it's a tad refreshing that Chris is sort of confessing as much.
Maybe now that he has all of this off his chest he could attempt to start acting like a non-partisan host?
What MATTHEWS should do is admit he's now tried this "commentator/moderator/reporter" gig, and found that it doesn't SUIT him. He can admit that having a job which calls for informing the public FAIRLY is a task that he cannot honestly handle. He can finally conclude that he cannot be "in good faith" as a media talking head, in a show that purports to "inform the public" with ideals such as objectivity, balance, and truth.
He can see that IF he loves Rudy, and hates Hillary, that his true role is as a campaign staffer FOR Rudy, and then he will be fulfilling the role called for by the job. He can tear down Hillary every day, and tout Rudy every second, and vie for airtime like the rest of the campaign PR staffers.
Of course, if he did THAT, he would be part of the Election calculus that labels advocacy as promotion that should be PAID for, and then disclosed as a campaign expense. In his current position, Matthews gets to give Rudy MILLIONS of dollars of advocacy, and opposition "contrast" promotion, FOR FREE!!!!
Now that the "Troubadour for Rudy" and HATER of Hillary has been self-disclosed, it is past time for the election bean-counters to reevaluate his role in American Politics, and, like the IRS disallowing a deduction, remove Matthews from the "toll free" status of "commentator" and start billing Rudy for the direct promotion time, AND having Rudy comply with the disclosure laws by tagging "HARDBALL" with a "I'm Rudy Guilliani, and I approved this program" disclaimer.