On the December 9 edition of MSNBC's Hardball, host Chris Matthews, who once referred to himself as “one of the troubadours” for former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) “in terms of [his] prospects,” again predicted success for Giuliani, asserting that he “is running for governor and I think he's going to be the favorite to beat” New York Gov. David Paterson (D). Matthews' previous forecasts with regard to Giuliani's prospects proved to be widely off the mark: During the 2008 presidential election, Matthews repeatedly predicted that Giuliani would win the Republican nomination or the presidency.

For example:

• On the July 18, 2006, edition of NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Matthews predicted that “the next president of the United States will be Rudy Giuliani.”
• On the July 12, 2006, edition of Hardball, Matthews said that Giuliani is “not only running” for president in 2008 but is “going to win the whole thing come around the next election, the way things look right now.”
• On the November 6, 2007, edition of Hardball, Matthews declared Giuliani “the person with the best shot to win the Republican nomination.”

A January 31 Boston Globe article following Giuliani's withdrawal from the presidential campaign and endorsement of Sen. John McCain reported that Giuliani's campaign “may have spent close to $60 million in pursuit of what turned out to be a single convention delegate, in Nevada.”

Discussing the 2008 presidential race, Matthews also repeatedly heaped praise on Giuliani, calling him a “hero,” “gutsy,” “tough,” and having “street cred”:

• During the November 6, 2007, edition of Hardball, Matthews asserted that he's “been talking to a lot of people in the South” who “hear about lower taxes, law and order, they like” Giuliani. Matthews 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.” In addition, introducing a report by MSNBC correspondent David Shuster, Matthews referred to Giuliani as “the man they call 'America's Mayor.' ”
• On the June 12, 2007, edition of MSNBC's Morning Joe, Matthews -- discussing Giuliani's presidential prospects -- asserted: “Rudy's the ultimate street politician. He was there on the curb when 9-11 struck. He had soot on his face,” later adding, “I think that's what people are looking for: somebody who's clear and present and right there answering our questions.”
• On the May 2, 2007, edition of Hardball, Matthews asked Mike DuHaime, campaign manager for Giuliani: “Who would win a street fight ... Rudy Giuliani or [Iranian] President [Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad, who would win that fight?” Matthews said that the fight would take place “over in Queens somewhere. It's a dark night, it's about 2 in the morning. Two guys are out behind the building, right?” DuHaime responded, “I am putting my money on Rudy on that one.” Matthews added, “If he wins that notion, he is the next president.”
• On the March 1, 2007, edition of Hardball, Matthews touted Giuliani as a “hero,” saying that Southerners “can't spell his name necessarily, but they know Rudy was a hero.” Matthews also praised Giuliani as “the one tough cop who was standing on the beat when we got hit last time and stood up and took it.”
• On the February 7, 2007, edition of MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, Matthews called Giuliani “the kind of gutsy, street-corner politician we all grew up with” who “stood on the corner during the fire and told us what was going on.”
• On the February 5, 2007, edition of MSNBC Live, Matthews declared that Giuliani “has street cred” on the issue of “protect[ing] this country against the bad guys.” Matthews also asserted: "[V]oters like this guy because during 9-11, he was the one guy there on the street corner, answering questions, not hiding like all the other pols did."
• On the July 18, 2006, edition of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Matthews suggested that Giuliani is someone who is “really good on the streets, who's very good on giving the information as they get it, just like in The Godfather."

Additionally, as Media Matters has documented, Matthews has also compared Giuliani to former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and has repeatedly touted Giuliani's purported elimination of the urine smell in New York City subways while he was mayor of the city.

From the December 9 edition of MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews:

CHRIS CILLIZZA (washingtonpost.com staff writer): I was just going to say. The idea that [New York governor] David Paterson would name [New York attorney general] Andrew Cuomo just to get Andrew Cuomo out of the way so Andrew Cuomo doesn't run against him in 2010, I think is farfetched. I don't think Andrew Cuomo is going to run for governor against David Paterson.

He may well wind up in the Senate, but I don't think David Paterson just shoves Andrew Cuomo out.

MATTHEWS: But I think Rudy Giuliani is going to run -- Rudy Giuliani is going to run against him, though. I'll bet you that right now. Rudy is running for governor and I think he's going to be the favorite to beat Paterson. We'll see when we come back with [CNBC host] John Harwood.