Posted on 10/02/2008 11:47:51 PM PDT by acsuc99
After the vice presidential debate Chris Matthews criticized Sarah Palin for, of all things, looking into the camera because it made her look like a "dolt." In fact, the "Hardball," host took several stylistic shots at Palin that implied the Alaska Governor wasn't very intelligent. Audio here
When guest panelist Roger Simon noted Palin looked directly into the camera, Matthews observed:
You know what I think of people when they come on "Hardball," and they look at the camera, I think they're dolts.
In addition to the "dolt," remark Matthews viewed Palin's performance as "so reciting," and "automatic," "like a spelling bee," and charged:
The dangerous thing about these debates is that you can really recite your way to victory. You can memorize an awful lot of material and get away with it as intelligence, when in fact, it's just really good preparation.
The following exchanges occurred during MSNBC's October 2, post vice presidential debate coverage and then later on a special midnight [EDT] edition of "Hardball:"
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MATTHEWS: But for a while there I thought I was listening to a person recite to the point and I mean recite speech parts, to the point I thought I was watching a spelling-bee. It was so reciting. So automatic. It sounded like a spelling-bee where you read each word out, you recite the word, give the spelling, give the word back again, exactly the way you were taught. I think it sounded a bit automatic, but let's leave it to the viewers. Some people might find that bracing.
...
MATTHEWS: David [Gregory] I think the dangerous thing about these debates is that you can really recite your way to victory. You can memorize an awful lot of material and get away with it as intelligence, when in fact, it's just really good preparation.
...
ROGER SIMON, POLITICO: When she faced the audience, she always looked directly into the camera, always directly at America. Joe Biden was turned for most of it.
CHRIS MATTHEWS: He was looking at Gwen.
SIMON: At Gwen Ifill, exactly! Which came across better?
MATTHEWS: Well apparently according to all the polling, talking to, answering the questions of the moderator, not ignoring those questions, not doing what every, every first year candidate does is go right to the camera. You know what I think of people when they come on "Hardball," and they look at the camera, I think they're dolts. I think that's the one thing people don't like, because when you're looking at me right now, that's real. You're looking at me that's real. You start looking in the camera right now and answer my question and see how you look. Okay just see how you look.
SIMON: Joe Biden went through-
MATTHEWS: Go ahead talk to the camera, don't talk, don't talk to me, see what you looked like. You look like a dolt!
Matthews tirade is more proof Sarah won.
Chris Matthews went to the same Catholic grade school I did.
It shames me.
But didn’t OBAMA do the same thing during the first debate?????
She didn’t send a tingle up his leg.
Post of the day and it is only 3 AM!
During tonight's debate Biden and Palin showed a mutual respect, and at the end of the debate both their families met and talked on stage. Matthews could learn a little about decent behavior and opinions. He could learn, but he is too much of a stupid ass to.
You know this lame fall-back excuse of “her answers were coached” and so on burns me up.
You have to be intelligent to be well-coached.
Is something wrong with Peyton Manning that he is “coached” every week, week after week, for, what, 10 years now in the NFL?
Is something wrong with him that he “prepares”? That he “practices”?
Does this mean that he is not intelligent, because he wouldn’t play football on game day as well if he were not “coached,” “prepared,” and “rehearsed”?
And Peyton Manning even gets told the “answers” in his headset!
Hell’s bells. What a transparent load of desperate verbal vomit, Chrissy.
Clearly, you got nothing on Palin.
Palin’s fault! ;)
Get used to hearing that for the next 12 years. :)
Sorry for you.
How many days did BO prepare for his debate? He didn’t even want to interrupt his preparation to deal with the financial crisis. And how many coaches does BO have? 300?
Matthews isn’t a credible source.
>Did it occur to that dolt (Matthews) that Governor Palin was looking the American people in the eye, not the camera?<
That’s how I took it.
She looked sincere and never once did I feel like she was condescending or one of “them”.
People should not underestimate this woman for one second! No doubt about it, this lady has nerves of steel.
Remember when the Code Pinko tried to get on stage?
You never would have guessed from looking at Sarah as she spoke. I never knew until I read it here.
She was very calm, cool and collected and didn’t even flinch or miss a beat while that was going on.
political cartoon ping
I am ashamed to say he is a Catholic
Sure, I understand and agree about the need to be well prepared, but what Chistingle was saying was different, he implied that she crammed the night before the final exam and came over as rehearsed.
The irony is many of us can tell you pretty much what Christingle will say about any Republican before he even says it.
I thought this loser Matthews go fired...?
chrissy is upset because sarah looks better with her gun than he does with his.
Did he start to go insane when he stopped filling-in for rush?
That's because his is a blowdryer.
BTW, Palin looked the best I've seen her. I didn't watch the debate but listened on radio; I got to work and looked online, and---WOW!
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