Liberal MSNBC host Chris Matthews on Thursday offered rare praise for a Republican on Thursday for delivering an anti-politician message.
Speaking at the Washington Ideas Forum in Washington, D.C., Matthews said front-runner Donald Trump has tapped into a new type of anger in voters, a sense of betrayal, and said that’s a big reason for the billionaire businessman’s popularity among conservatives.
“The whole thing to me is just entertainment, except behind it all, he says that all these [politicians] behind me have betrayed you,” Matthews said. “He’s got ’em. I think he’s got ’em in most cases.”
Pointing to several times Trump has insulted the looks or personalities of his GOP rivals, Matthews said that Trump “also buries into it a very patriotic sentiment.”
Since launching his campaign in June, Trump has rocketed to the top of national and early primary state-level polls, despite controversial comments he made about illegal immigrants, GOP Sen. John McCain’s war record and GOP presidential rival Carly Fiorina’s appearance.
A new USA Today poll also showed that Fiorina, a former Hewlett-Packard CEO, and Ben Carson, a retired neurosurgeon, are leading the field with Trump, though none of them have ever held public office. Trump also leads the Washington Examiner‘s presidential power rankings.
Matthews said their outsider status and Trump’s message that politicians can’t get anything done has appealed to the sense that public officials have betrayed their constituents.
“He says, ‘All they care about is being re-elected,’ and Trump has nailed them on this,” he said.
