The liberal personalities on MSNBC reacted to President Barack Obama's
Thursday night speech at the Democratic National Convention in the exact
same way they did to Bill Clinton the previous evening [1] - with unanimous praise. Ed Schultz's ecstacy was apparent: "He made me feel good tonight. He made the American people feel good tonight, and he gave us confidence....It was a very visionary speech." Al Sharpton trumpeted the President's "epic" address, and declared, "I think that Barack Obama won the election tonight."
Unsurprisingly, Chris Matthews rambled on and on about the apparent greatness of the speech: "I think tonight he did it again, didn't he?...The most powerful statement tonight he made is, I am the President. I am the President, and you're not, and I've had to do the tough things of leading this country, and you haven't....It was a profound statement
of, I've got the best position in this country and in this race,
because I am doing the job and you're just twiddling your fingers,
thinking about what it might be like to be President....What a home run that was." [audio available here [2]; video below]
Before his feel good moment, Schultz gushed over how it was supposedly a great convention for the Democrats, glossing over the logistical difficulties and the controversy over including God and Jerusalem in the party platform: "Very well-coordinated convention, very well-coordinated message."
Former McCain campaign adviser Steve Schmidt seconded the MSNBC host's assessment, and reused one of Matthews's terms: "I
don't think the Democrats could have possibly done a better job this
week in building a case for the President's re-election. I think their
convention was a home run." Schmidt later added his own compliment for the President: "It was an effective speech, as almost all of his speeches are."
The transcript of the relevant portions from MSNBC's 11 pm Eastern hour
live coverage of the 2012 Democratic National Convention on Thursday
night:
11:06 pm EDT
CHRIS MATTHEWS: I think tonight he did it again, didn't he? (crowd
cheers and applauds) But more than that, the profound thing he
accomplished tonight - the President - was to turn the whole table on
those who thought that the incumbency would be a problem, and the
challenger would have it easy.
He – the most powerful statement tonight he made is, I am the
President. (crowd cheers and applauds) I am the President, and you're
not, and I've had to do the tough things of leading this country, and
you haven't, and you don't have a clue about foreign policy. It's all
new to you, and you think all we have to do is take two tax cuts to
solve our common cold because you don't have a clue as to how to solve
this country's challenges. It was a profound statement of, I've got the
best position in this country and in this race, because I am doing the
job and you're just twiddling your fingers, thinking about what it might
be like to be President. And that is huge, because we all thought the
problem was defending the way things are, and he's made the opponents
defend the fact they don't know what's going on, and that's the big
development in that speech. What a home run that was. (crowd cheers and
applauds)
11:08 pm EDT
ED SCHULTZ: I thought the President tonight had one of his strongest
finishes – very passionate. But, tonight, the President went after where
he has been attacked and mocked by the right wing about hope and
change. He specifically pointed out what is different in this country
under his leadership - the health care; the education; the immigration;
and the don't ask, don't tell. And he is – was referring back to the
people who had spoken previously in this convention - very
well-coordinated convention, very well-coordinated message. And about
the hope, he put it on the American people. He made me feel good
tonight. He made the American people feel good tonight, and he gave us
confidence. He pointed out what we've been through, what we can get
through, and where we're going. It was a very visionary speech, and it
was vintage Barack Obama.
11:09 pm EDT
AL
SHARPTON: ...He made an epic speech tonight, and he did it because he
was substantive. He laid out policy; he laid out exactly what he's going
to do; but he also brought a bigger vision. And, at the same time, he's
been criticized a lot on this hope and change. He elevated hope and
change. He didn't give it up. He says, we're still going to deal with
hope; we're still going to deal with change; we've had a hard way to go;
that's what hope and change is. So, he handed back what people
ridiculed to them. He handed it back on a silver platter, laid out
policies, and reduced his opponents to just some people that are
chattering somewhere in Never Never Land. I think that Barack Obama won
the election tonight.
11:11 pm EDT
STEVE SCHMIDT: ...I don't think the Democrats could have possibly done a
better job this week in building a case for the President's
re-election. I think their convention was a home run....It was an
effective speech, as almost all of his speeches are.