There Chris Matthews goes again, insisting Republicans are racist.
According to the Hardball host, President Obama's skin tone may well account for his paltry 10 percent job-approval rating among Republicans in a recent Gallup poll. By way of contrast, the same poll shows 81 percent of Democrats supporting him and 46 percent of independents agreeing he's doing a good job.
The MSNBC anchor made his pronouncement during a roundtable discussion on Wednesday's program featuring Eugene Robinson and Anne Gearan of the Washington Post and April Ryan of American Urban Radio Networks.
While Robinson "quantify" the effect Obama's race had on Republican disapproval, but neither he nor Ryan or Gearan objected to Matthews smear of Republican voters.
The context of the remarks is the panel's discussion of how President Obama has had a more successful second term compared to his first, a rarity among second-term presidents. Here's the relevant transcript:
MSNBC
Hardball
September 9, 2015CHRIS MATTHEWS: Let's look at how the public's responded to this. Despite his many victories, President Obama's approval rating currently stands at 49 percent nationally, according to Gallup. But when you break it down by numbers by party, his approval is at 81 percent, more than 4 out of 5, among Democrats, 46 percent among independents, and just 10 percent among Republicans. Well, the number that jumps off that list is the hatred of this president from the right and even center right, Gene, even center-right. What is that about?!
EUGENE ROBINSON: Well, it is extraordinary.
MATTHEWS: He's not Franklin Roosevelt. Is he that big that they hate him that big?
EUGENE ROBINSON: Well, it's extraordinary. I'm not sure I've seen anything quite like it.
MATTHEWS: Is it worst than Clinton, worse than Truman?
ROBINSON: Yeah, I think it's worse than Clinton, I think it's worse than Truman. And I think there is something about the Republican Party, and there's something about the president, OK, yeah. He's different.
[laughter from Ryan]
APRIL RYAN: I'm waiting to hear, how different is he, Eugene?
[ laughter from Ryan ]
ROBINSON: The president is black.
MATTHEWS: You think there's just an extra 20 pounds pounded on to the disapproval from race? Just bad racial attitudes just pounding on there?
ROBINSON: I can't, you know, wish I could quantify.
MATTHEWS: Nobody's going to admit it. Nobody's going to admit it.
ROBINSON: You know, some political scientist will quantify it some day.--
MATTHEWS: Everybody's mumbling this baby.
RYAN: You think so?
MATTHEWS: Yeah, I think they're mumbling this baby. Yeah, you know I am right about that one.
