MSNBC host Chris Matthews added to Left’s limited supply of post-2016 self-reflection last weekend.
The Washington Examiner’s Paul Bedard reported on Matthews’ comments, which came during a discussion of his new book on Bobby Kennedy. Here’s what the anchor said:
Ever since we started this Archie Bunker thing in the early ‘70s, making fun of white working people, we kissed them goodbye. You make fun of people, you look down on them, they get the message. You call them ‘deplorables,’ they hear it. You bet they hear it.
You say they cling to their guns and religion? Oh yeah? I cling to my religion. OK. I’m a little person, and you’re a big person. Thank you, I’ll be voting for the other guy this time.
This is not a novel observation, but Matthews is absolutely correct. With one year’s distance from Trump’s electoral upset, however, similar concessions have remained few and far between. Maybe if progressive pundits and celebrities would stop dissing the most popular sport in the country, or mocking prayer after national tragedies, they’d make a little bit of progress.
But even if leaders on the Left heeded Matthews’ guidance, it wouldn’t be enough. What he’s describing — clear contempt among some liberals towards members of the white working class — is deep-seated. It’s cultural. It’s more than simply not calling people “deplorables,” it’s not actually thinking they’re deplorable. Even if, for instance, they happen to want a border wall and can’t stand Colin Kaepernick. That’s a task I’m just not sure most progressives are really up to.
The one person who’s actually making that effort in a meaningful way? Sarah Silverman.
