Chris Matthews got into such a tizzy about
Republicans criticizing Barack Obama on his terror policy that he flew
off the handle, on Thursday's Hardball, as he yelled at his GOP guest: "What's your problem with the guy? Why do you keep bitching?!"
During a segment with regular panelists, Democratic strategist Steve
McMahon and Republican strategist Todd Harris, the MSNBC host directed,
what seemed to be a pent-up frustration about the GOP at Harris, for
his party's questioning of "one of the smartest presidents we've ever had." [audio available here [1]]
The following outburst was aired on the May 6 edition of Hardball:
CHRIS MATTHEWS: You know what I don't get. Let me get back to something I have better understanding. Because we've done so much thinking about terrorism since 9/11. Everybody has. The President has a regular meeting in a sit room - we found out - a situation room where he sits there and studies. He wants to be an expert on every aspect of what threatens us in the world. All the aspects of al Qaeda. Everything going on with Hezbollah and everybody else in the world. Trying to figure it out. Studying it constantly. And, and your crowd is making it out that he doesn't seem to get it. What doesn't he get? This the smartest, one of the smartest presidents we've ever had, whatever you think of his politics. He has tried to master this subject. They nabbed that guy in a few hours. They're doing the job. We're figuring out how to do the job in Afghanistan, Iraq. Modulating it, very carefully. No radical left wing swings or anything. What's your problem with the guy? Why do you keep bitching?!
TODD HARRIS, GOP STRATEGIST: Chris he could have a PhD in this if...
MATTHEWS: Well what's the problem?
HARRIS: It's not how many facts are in his head. It's a disagreement on his philosophy.
MATTHEWS: You got these guys saying, Boehner keeps saying he doesn't, he isn't rabid enough. He isn't sweating enough. He isn't sweating and, and snarling about terrorism all day and talking like Rudy Giuliani all day long. What's the problem?
-Geoffrey Dickens is the Senior News Analyst at the Media Research Center. You can follow him on Twitter here [2]