After former ABC News political analyst and disgruntled ex-Republican Matthew Dowd announced this past week that he would run for Texas lieutenant governor as a Democrat, CNN and MSNBC both promoted their frequent guest, treating him to interviews that bolstered his vitriol against Republicans.
On Wednesday's Deadline: White House, MSNBC host Nicolle Wallace read back to Dowd some of his attacks on Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick. After Dowd declared that Texas Republicans have been "hateful and cruel," and excoriated Patrick as someone who only cares about five percent of voters, Wallace aimed her own barbs at the GOP as she followed up:
Matthews, as a strategist with whom I worked alongside, I understood this about voters. One, they don't like to be lied to. And, two, they want to see government deliver. The current Republican party breaks those rules. The Republicans lie to them all the time. It would seem Republicans knew Donald Trump was a big fat liar.
She soon added:
Texas has delivered gun laws that endanger all Texans. It's been AWOL on COVID protections that's killed Texans. It's taking away reproductive freedoms that has Texas women and couples in some instances fleeing the state for health care. I mean, how do you deal with what is really an upside-down dynamic in terms of how traumatized how, sort of, Stockholm syndrome Republican voters feel about their failed leaders?
Dowd eventually recalled that he has worked for several Texas Democrats in the past, including Senator Lloyd Bentsen and Governor Ann Richards and Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock, before defecting to Governor Bush.
On The 11th Hour on Thursday, MSNBC host Brian Williams was so determined to plug the liberal media figure's credibility, that he twice incorrectly labeled him as a "lifelong Republican," spurring Dowd to repeat he worked for Democrats. He's expected to face opposition in a Democrat primary from Mike Collier, who ran against Republican Dan Patrick and lost the last time.
You probably recognize that man, our next guest, as a guest on this network and this broadcast frequently. After a lifetime in Republican politics and having watched what is happening in his own state of Texas, he made a major announcement this week, as you saw. We are pleased to have back with us Matthew Dowd, former strategist to George W. Bush among others, now running as a Democrat...
A bit later, the MSNBC host reiterated the point as he also oddly invoked the Glenda the Good Witch from The Wizard of Oz:, as if Republicans have been the Wicked Witch of the West: "How does a lifelong Texas Republican convince Democrats, -- convince moderates that, as Glenda the Good Witch said, it's safe to come out?"
The Democratic candidate then admitted that he was not actually a lifelong Republican. Lyin' Brian does it again.
Over on CNN, Don Lemon also had Dowd as a guest on Wednesday night, giving him a warm and cozy forum to attack Republicans. The Democrats are "Team Democracy" and the Republicans are "Team Autocracy," Dowd said. Lemon also referred to the "Fox Propaganda Network."
By contrast, on Friday's Fox and Friends First, Fox News media analyst Joe Concha informed viewers that Dowd had sneakily removed thousands of his past tweets as the former journalist pursues his political ambitions in the Democratic party.
The episode of MSNBC's Deadline: White House was sponsored in part by Glowforge, and the episode of The 11th Hour by Fingerhut. Their contact information is linked.
Transcripts follow:
MSNBC's Deadline: White House
September 29, 2021
4:28 p.m. Eastern
NICOLLE WALLACE: We have a saying around here: W-T-F is going on in Texas? In Texas, as you just saw, the out of touch, deadly, divisive rhetoric of Texas's Republicans. That's why my old friend, Matthew Dowd -- a former George W. Bush chief strategist -- made an announcement today -- says he is running for Texas lieutenant governor as a Democrat to restore the values and soul in Texas against those Republican leaders and bills statewide that he says have failed and have embarrassed all Texans. As a Republican, he's trying to unseat, Matthew says this, quote,
"Dan Patrick, the current LG, has repeatedly lied, misled, and waged a hateful culture war against us, endangering each of our lives but especially the most vulnerable: whether it be on the pandemic, the failed electric grid, voting rights, guns, or equality for all and access to health care."
(...)
For people who don't know you, you have such a well-rounded life experience that I think you bring to all analysis. You certainly brought it to campaigns -- you brought it to wearing your heart on your sleeve -- when you publicly broke with George W. Bush -- and you've come to it as a human and a friend and a dad, and I want to hear about how that drove you to do what you did today.
(...)
MATTHEW DOWD, EX-ABC POLITICAL ANALYST: -- and I hate what the GOP leadership is doing. It's not only the rhetoric and the tone and all that which is hateful and cruel, but it's the actual policies that are hateful and cruel and undemocratic here. It's hurting people. It's hurting people every single day. It's hurting people. It's hurting women. It's hurting people of color. It's hurting people without health care. It's hurting people that depend on the energy grid. It's hurting people every single day. And, to me, Texas right now is the front and center attack on our democracy. And at some point in time, we have to ask ourselves, "Don't we want integrity? Don't we want public services? And don't we want people that are servant leaders that serve the public good?
This is not something I can do alone, Nicolle. It's something I have to do as a "we" even though the people that have governed in Texas -- the lieutenant governor -- has all been about "me," himself, and the five percent that he appeals to. And so I can stand here and say I'm running, which I am, I am going to -- for 405 days I am going to tell the truth about Dan Patrick. And I'm going to tell the truth about what the Republicans have done. But in the end, I will win based upon whether Texans believe that we can actually win the soul of our state and reengage democracy again because right now it's fragile.
WALLACE: Matthews, as a strategist with whom I worked alongside, I understood this about voters. One, they don't like to be lied to. And, two, they want to see government deliver. The current Republican party breaks those rules. The Republicans lie to them all the time. It would seem Republicans knew Donald Trump was a big fat liar. They stayed with him. Many of them are still with him. And it turns into delivering. I mean, Texas has delivered gun laws that endanger all Texans -- it's been AWOL on COVID protections that's killed Texans -- it's taking away reproductive freedoms that has Texas women and couples in some instances fleeing the state for health care. I mean, how do you deal with what is really an upside down dynamic in terms of how traumatized how, sort of, Stockholm syndrome Republican voters feel about their failed leaders?
(...)
DOWD: One of the first jobs I had here when I came to Texas, I worked for the Texas AFL-CIO in Texas on behalf of workers. My second job was for the Texas Democratic party. Then, I worked for Texas Senator -- Democratic Senator Lloyd Bentsen, who was then picked on the ticket with Mike Dukakis. And then I got to know Bob Bullock -- I ran Bob Bullock's first campaign and his second campaign for lieutenant governor. He was the last Democratic lieutenant governor of Texas. I also helped, in that '90 race, Ann Richards win the race for governor -- someone we all look back on fondly in this.
(...)
MSNBC's The 11th Hour with Brian Williams
September 30, 2021
11:32 p.m. Eastern
BRIAN WILLIAMS: You probably recognize that man, our next guest, as a guest on this network and this broadcast frequently. After a lifetime in Republican politics and having watched what is happening in his own state of Texas, he made a major announcement this week, as you saw. We are pleased to have back with us Matthew Dowd, former strategist to George W. Bush among others, now running as a Democrat...
(...)
DOWD: They're hurting Texans -- they're just going out of their way cruelly and cravenly to hurt Texans, and I just decided, as I said, enough's enough, and so I'm going to offer my candidacy. I'm going to spend the next 400 days just telling the truth about Dan Patrick, the lieutenant governor, and he's not going to like it, but I'm just going to tell the Texans the truth, and that we can do better. We can have public service in the capitol where we don't have it -- and we can have truth and facts, and science and lead policy and not cravenness.
BRIAN WILLIAMS: I know that you insist upon believing that there is still a rational center out there, and here's the question. How does a lifelong Texas Republican convince Democrats, -- convince moderates that, as Glenda the Good Witch said, it's safe to come out?
DOWD: Well, as you probably know, I started my life as a Democrat. I actually got elected the last Democratic lieutenant governor of Texas, Bob Bullock. I ran his campaigns in '90 and '94, and helped Ann Richards, the last Democratic elected governor of the state of Texas. So I do have a pedigree in it...
