On Wednesday’s Morning Joe, former Hardball host Chris Matthews called the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and their policy platform “crazy” as he pleaded for “regular Democrats” to distance themselves from the group.
Even with Matthews’ DSA dislike, Joe Scarborough continued to attack Republicans as the true “socialist threat,” even amid the actual rise of DSA candidates in Democratic primaries.
Scarborough led into Matthews’ first words on the show and tried to frame the Republicans as socialists, but Matthews did not follow and instead went right after the DSA and their policies.
Matthews started and claimed the “DSA has done a favor to non-DSA Democrats, to regular democrats who are regular members of the party.”
On Wednesday’s Morning Joe, after Joe Scarborough went on his usual rant that Republicans were the real socialists, former Hardball host Chris Matthews instead hit the DSA for some of their radical views, like plans to “get rid of the border,” “get rid of prisons,” and “get rid… pic.twitter.com/o568nPTlZv
— Nick (@nspin310) August 12, 2026
Matthews continued, “They've listed what they believe in. Their chair made that clear,” before he listed some of their policy platform.
He imitated the DSA and said, "We're going to get rid of ICE. Not just ICE, we're going to get rid of the border. We're not going to have a border anymore. We're not going to effectively control people coming in and out of the country. And so I think -- and we're going to get rid of prisons. You know, we're going to get rid of the Pentagon."
On the DSA policy to defund the Pentagon, he recalled the Iran hostage crisis under his former boss, President Jimmy Carter:
Well, what happens when your hostages are your former diplomats, like what happened with President Carter? People take your diplomats [as] hostages. What do you do then? You need an army. You don't have to like to have an army, but you do need to have one.
Matthews then pleaded with Democrats: "All these positions can be denied by any regular Democrat. All you have to do is go out there and say, "Thank you, DSA, for telling us what you believe in. I don't believe in that stuff.' So, it's going to require politicians to be good politicians and say, here's where I stand."
He followed with dislike of Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s “big tent” stance:
Well, the problem with big tent defense is every Democrat has to defend all this crap coming from the left. They've got to say, ‘I believe in all this crazy stuff, and that makes me a Democrat.’ You've got to say, ‘No, no, I'm not a member of the DSA and here's why,’ and make it very clear.
Matthews then added that the “regular Democrats” should say “I’m not with this crowd” as he warned Democrats, "the last six weeks of this election is going to be an attack on El-Sayed and the DSA in New York and the Mamdani, and it's all going to come out and blame every Democrat for everything the DSA is doing.”
Even with Matthews’ warning for Democrats, Scarborough did not really return to the point, and instead, claimed “threat of socialism” was “on the rise in America, but it’s coming from inside the White House.”
After Scarborough’s meltdown over the DSA and Hasan Piker on Monday, Matthews has now joined in to warn the liberal watchers of Morning Joe about the DSA as socialists continue to win in primaries.
The transcript is below. Click "expand":
MS NOW’s Morning Joe
August 12, 2026
7:18:00 AM Eastern
(...)
JOE SCARBOROUGH: You know, Chris Matthews, I know because I am a conservative, and I can tell you that for 45 years, conservatives and Republicans would bitch about Richard Nixon's 1971 wage and price controls. How dare he do that for 90 days! They went on and on and on and on. Because it was anti-free market, it was anti-capitalism. It was the centralized state getting involved in business.
So, here with Margaret Thatcher - here with Donald Trump, you have somebody that's taking us to pre-Thatcher Britain days. As Cato has said, he’s seized chunks of over 30 private corporations. He has - as Richard said, he has put in price controls. He’s bailed out industries. He's talking about credit card limits. I mean, this guy is talking about and bragging about the fact that they're seizing private companies.
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Well, here's what I think, and I've been thinking about this for days now. The DSA has done a favor to non-DSA Democrats, to regular Democrats who are regular members of the party. They've listed what they believe in. Their chair made that clear. It's in Peggy Noonan's column this week. It's very clear.
We're going to get rid of ICE. Not just ICE, we're going to get rid of the border. We're not going to have a border anymore. We're not going to effectively control people coming in and out of the country. And so I think - and we're going to get rid of prisons. You know, we're going to get rid of the Pentagon.
We're going to negotiate. Well, what happens when your hostages are your former diplomats, like what happened with President Carter? People take your diplomats [as] hostages. What do you do then? You need an army. You don't have to like to have an army, but you do need to have one.
All these positions can be denied by any regular Democrat. All you have to do is go out there and say, ‘Thank you, DSA, for telling us what you believe in. I don't believe in that stuff.’ Because you can't follow - AOC, I like AOC generally, but she came out and said, “We're just a big tent party.”
Well, the problem with big tent defense is every Democrat has to defend all this crap coming from the left. They've got to say, ‘I believe in all this crazy stuff, and that makes me a Democrat.’ You've got to say, ‘No, no, I'm not a member of the DSA and here's why,’ and make it very clear.
So, it's going to require politicians to be good politicians and say, here's where I stand.
SCARBOROUGH: Right.
MATTHEWS: This is what I am - I’m a regular Democrat. I'm for labor unions. I'm for opportunity for everybody. I'm for civil rights. I'm for all the things I believe in as a Democrat, but I'm not with this crowd.
And I think that's going to be a line that has to be drawn by Democrats –
SCARBOROUGH: Yeah.
MATTHEWS: – because I'm telling you, the last six weeks of this election is going to be an attack on El-Sayed and the DSA in New York and the Mamdani, and it's all going to come out and blame every Democrat for everything the DSA is doing.
I don't believe in the DSA plan. I don't believe in their checklist of what they believe in. I'll say so. But running for office is going to require that, I think before now - before the election.
(...)
