Chris Matthews Admonishes Reporters For 'Gridiron' Laughter

Chris Matthews issued a strong, and incensed, reaction to a YouTube clip of George W. Bush's lame attempt at musical theatre from this weekend's Gridiron Dinner. The sight of reporters standing and laughing at Bush's hokum caused Matthews to ascend his righteous soapbox and bellow his disapproval:

MATTHEWS: That was quite a hoot. All that joking by the President about Brownie, the guy in charge of the New Orleans disaster and, of course, Scooter Libby, the guy involved in the CIA cover-up. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's reporters - the best of them - laughing at events and political acts that warrant anything - I mean, anything - but laughter.

There is nothing, nothing funny about Bush's reference to Brownie, the disastrous appointment followed by the catastrophic handling of the Katrina horror in New Orleans. Nothing funny about a war fought for bad intelligence. And a top aide, Scooter Libby, who committed perjury and obstruction of justice to cover it up. And nothing funny about a President who commuted that sentence to keep the cover-up protected. Otherwise I'm sure it was an enjoyable get-together between journalists and the people they're charged with covering.

Of course, it's worth noting that Matthews himself is no stranger to these sorts of get-togethers. Take this year's Washington Press Club Foundation's Congressional Dinner, which WaPo's Reliable Sourceresses Amy Argetsinger and Roxanne Roberts describe as "kickoff of Beltway prom season -- the chummy, edgy, giddy, sometimes surreal banquets that bring the D.C. press corps and the politicians they cover together to break bread and crack wise." If you recall, the slated emcee of that affair - Tony Snow - was replaced at the last minute by an enthusiastic Chris Matthews. Did Matthews take the time to decry the cozy relationship between the media and the power-brokers? Not really. In fact, someone on the scene reported to Wonkette that Matthews spent the majority of the time trying to get the crowd to listen to him:

I was one of the reporters at the Washington Press dinner last night mceed [sic] by Chris Matthews and he had to admonish the crowd several times for talking over him and the previous speaker -- to no avail, the crowd just kept on talking right over Matthews.

But then once he was done and the more "important" people were up, not just Pelosi and co. but the journalism honorees, etc. the crowd was quiet. I think people just don't like Chris Matthews.

So, was Matthews' outburst fueled by sincere indignance or mere professional jealousy? We look forward to this year's White House Correspondents' Dinner, where Matthews will surely stand outside and protest the behavior of "the best" reporters.

Comments

[nellie]

05:00 PM on 03/12/2008

So much for the "sunny nobility," huh, Chris?

[BrooklynLager]

04:16 PM on 03/12/2008

I agree with stupidme - that was a great segment by Chris Matthews. Doesn't change how I feel about him in general, but he was absolutely right and he showed some character.

[slow2]

04:51 PM on 03/12/2008

BL et al,

Yes it was a fine moment, and Matthews should be commended.

Years of corrupt, murderous activity by the Bush administration is no laughing matter and the sight of a sniggering President of the United States singing about his partners-in-crime deserves condemnation.

Thanks to Chris Matthews; hope he gets some appreciation for this willingness to speak out, and loudly!

[JFRED]

03:58 PM on 03/12/2008

Maybe if those jovial journalists had listened to Chris Matthews last year, they might have heard something edifying. Moreover, maybe Matthews has learned something important over the past year: that journalism is supposed to protect Truth, not lie down with Lies.
U.S. journalists too often have preferred to be pals with political incumbents rather than hold them to close scrutiny . Nothing was more skewed by this ethic than the first weeks of the Iraq Invasion. From embedded journalism to unquestioning jingoism, the American press turned the horrific invasion of an innocent nation and an innocent people into a video party. I'll never forget one reporter aboard a U.S. carrier asking an American pilot to wave to her network's camera just before he tookoff to bomb metropolitan Baghdad. Party hardy!
And it's nothing new. Journalists like Walter Cronkite and Chet Huntley appeared in government anti-Communist propagada films in the 1950s and 1960s. Network newsmen lent their voice-over authority to government Cold War propaganda broadcasts distributed directly to radio stations.
For too long the U.S. press has been compromised. Maybe realizing the fiasco it enabled in Iraq will help our press find a new integrity.
Don't assail Chris Matthews. He may be the new Moses.

[ibsteve2u]

01:11 PM on 03/12/2008

I can understand why he is offended, but the reality is Bush and this Administration knocked America down, raped us, and are going to get away with it...might as well laugh about it.

[Blutus]

12:03 PM on 03/12/2008

What a blow hard.

He was drooling over Dopey just a short while ago, about what a man he is!

Matthews, like ALL of these pundits, is really, really over rated.

Anything to wear the cloak of moral superiority, eh Chris?

[stupidme]

12:41 PM on 03/12/2008

Don't complain - Take it when you get it!