Chris Matthews, speaking to former Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele on MSNBC’S Hardball, tried to uncover the causes of Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s rise to the top in the Republican presidential primary polls. Matthews’ first answer? Racism.
Matthews: “They all know he’s a Tea Party guy. They all know he’s a secessionist, against voting rights, against –”
And Steele, perhaps in a demonstration of why he lost his job as RNC chairman, effectively confirmed that characterization of Perry, saying “They may know that.” Steele initially said that as a response to the “Tea Party guy” line, but it shows weak messaging that he didn’t correct Matthews on the ensuing charges, which simultaneously acuse the Tea Party of being secessionist and opposing voting rights.
Matthews’ secessionism comment goes back to a speech Perry gave in 2009, when someone from the audience shouted “secede.” When asked about issue after that speech, Perry offered this response:
Even to take that comment at its most unflattering for Perry – to assume that Perry thinks Texas has a right to secede from the union, but he doesn’t think that should happen – that hardly constitutes secessionism. It seems like you should actually have to advocate seceding in order to be a secessionist. As it is, Matthew is just indulging in more racial smearing of Perry, whom he has called “Bull Connor with a smile.” Connor was a civil rights era racist.
Matthews came up with a better explanation for Perry’s success a moment later:
That’s a pretty solid analysis. After all, Obama created 0 jobs last month – the worst failure of job creation since 1945 – while Texas under Perry’s watch has accounted for about half of national job creation in the last two years.
You can watch the video here:
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