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Chris Matthews

Chris Matthews Quotes

Commentator

Chris Matthews is an American television journalist and political commentator, recognized for his tenure as the host of 'Hardball with Chris Matthews' on MSNBC since 1997. With a career spanning several decades, he has been a central figure in covering political events and presidential campaigns.

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Famous Chris Matthews Quotes

“I know, when I look into the eyes of my own children, the look of wonder when I speak of life back in the '60s. That's why the Rolling Stones are such a hit even in their 60s, why Dennis Hopper is so compelling, even when he's making pitches for something unhip as long-term financial planning.”

Knows Looks Children Long Eye Speak Term My Own Wonder Stones Financial Planning Long Term Compelling Rolling Rolling Stones Financial Planning

Author:Chris Matthews

“It [smoking] was like an aphrodisiac. Actors would say let's have another cigarette on that great scenes, and they'd blow smoke in each other's face.”

Faces Actors Scene Blow Smoke Cigarette Aphrodisiac

Author:Chris Matthews

“All Hollywood endings - the bad endings have to be the bad guys to be falling about 50 stories to his death and you have to see his eyeballs as he goes to his doom.”

Stories Guy Fall Hollywood Bad Guys Doom Eyeballs

Author:Chris Matthews

“It's no good to shoot a guy anymore. It's not enough. Nobody is throwing anybody off of buildings after seeing these movies, but they are smoking after seeing some good-looking celebrity smoke.”

Enough Guy Seeing Building Smoke Smoking Throwing Looking Good

Author:Chris Matthews

“Isn't Hollywood - and I love movies - a lot of it about a big lie?”

Bigs Lying Hollywood Movie Love

Author:Chris Matthews

“People - Hollywood doesn't talk about how bad cigarette smells when it smells like they wake up in bed with somebody who has been smoking the night before.”

People Has Beens Night Bed Hollywood Wake Up Smell Smoking Cigarette

Author:Chris Matthews

“I'm reading Joe Eszterhas biography; it's fabulous. Every time he made a movie, he fought with the director or the producer over the ending.”

Made Reading Directors Producers Biographies Fabulous

Author:Chris Matthews

“I love what Joe Eszterhas written about Bill Clinton. It's hilarious, Clinton as a rock star, which is the way we should remember him.”

Way Should Remember Stars Written Rocks Bills Clinton Rock Star

Author:Chris Matthews

“If you think what you see on TV is prejudiced, it is. Follow your instincts.”

Ifs Thinking Tvs Instinct

Author:Chris Matthews

“Isn't it odd that the guy was politically correct in one particularly weird way. Bill Clinton never lit a cigar.”

Way Guy Bills Clinton Odd Lit Cigar Politically Correct

Author:Chris Matthews

“Jeb Bush has being slammed by his own party for a very messy response to questions about his brother's war in Iraq. He should have been ready for this one.”

Should Has Beens War Party Ready Brother Should Have Response Iraq Messy Should Have Been

Author:Chris Matthews

“Hillary Clinton follows a cardinal rule in politics - don't commit to a decision before you have to.”

Decision Clinton Commit Cardinals Spats Cardinal Rules

Author:Chris Matthews

“Right now, the old guys, the old farts, if you will, are still running the show, and the women haven't gotten their place yet at all.”

Ifs Stills Shows Running Guy Havens Right Now Fart Old Guys Old Farts

Author:Chris Matthews

“The Indians are still winning the battle against the white men, but sooner or later, the white guy will win.”

Men Stills Guy Winning White Battle Sooner Or Later White Man White Guys

Author:Chris Matthews

“I thought, giving Jeb Bush the benefit of the doubt all these years, that he was sitting, saying, what a numbnut, what an idiot. My brother's a fool. He's listening to these neocons that talked him into this war. Dad would have never done this.”

Giving Years War Done Doubt Brother Listening Fool Dad Benefits Sitting Idiot My Brother Benefit Of The Doubt

Author:Chris Matthews

“I still think a reasonable question is, would we be better off with [Muamar] Gadhafi and Bashar al-Assad still in there and Mubarak still there and Saddam [Hussein] there than the crap we have got looking at us now?”

Thinking Stills Reasonable Als Crap Saddam Better Off Hussein Assad Mubarak Bashar Al Assad

Author:Chris Matthews

“I think a lot it was the theology, that the road to Jerusalem runs through Baghdad, that somehow if we broke apart the rejectionist states, like Iraq, then the whole Middle East would reconfigure itself into a more favorable environment for democracy and Israel and us.”

Ifs Thinking States Whole Running Democracy Environment Middle Iraq Israel East Theology Broke Middle East Jerusalem Baghdad

Author:Chris Matthews

“While Jeb Bush finds himself mired in the muck of an intramural fight in his own party over his remarks about the Iraq War, Hillary Clinton is sticking to the low-key strategy, and it looks like it`s working.”

Looks War Fighting Party Keys Lows Strategy Clinton Iraq Remarks Iraq War Low Key

Author:Chris Matthews

“Campaign manager Eli Gold played by Alan Cumming on "The Good Wife" describing an old maxim in politics, don't commit to a decision before you have to. And that rule appears to have worked brilliantly for Democratic candidate front-runner Hillary Clinton, who has avoided taking a position on the president's trade agenda and has remained out of the ugly public spat with the progressive wing of her party. She has also not taken a position on the Iranian - on the talks.”

“In light of Jeb Bush's recent fumbles on Iraq , maybe the Clinton campaign is making the smart move here by not saying.”

Light Moving Smart Clinton Iraq Campaigns

Author:Chris Matthews

“I'm center left, but I think - most things, left on some, center on some, right on very few.”

Author:Chris Matthews

“I do think that Hillary Clinton risks looking like she's imitating Elizabeth Warren when she starts doing it. She'll look like Elizabeth the second. And nobody is electing anybody a second of anything.”

Thinking Looks Risk Clinton Imitating

Author:Chris Matthews

“B.B. King will be remembered for his impressive skills on the guitar, that King defined the blue genre.”

Kings Skills Blue Guitar Defined Genre Remembered Impressive

Author:Chris Matthews

“When lightning strikes you want to be there, right there in the room. You, not everybody`s going to say yes to you. Just don`t ever say no to yourself, ever.”

Want Rooms Strikes Lightning

Author:Chris Matthews

“Just come in there and stand before a live crowd, thousands of people at an Ivy League School, like Eleanor Roosevelt said, always do what you're afraid to do.”

Author:Chris Matthews

“I tried to talk to the graduates who haven't figured what they're going to do next. The kids who are heading in medical school or law school, they've got pretty much figured where they're headed in life. But there are so many kids out there, that are just going, they're still kids. They've always been promoted from grade to grade.”

Stills Kids School Law Next Havens Medical Grades Graduates Headings Law School Medical School

Author:Chris Matthews

“I`'ll make it official. I care about Don Draper and what happens to him and I'm not the only one who does.”

Doe Happens Care Officials I Care

Author:Chris Matthews

“I care about Roger Sterling, one of the most subtle and amazing characters in dramatic history ["Mad Men"]. This guys who knows precisely who he is, yet leaves us time after time hoping desperately for him to finally grab control of his life and some responsibility for those around him.”

Knows Men Character Care Guy Responsibility Mad Dramatic Subtle I Care This Guy Roger Mad Men Sterling

Author:Chris Matthews

“Republicans woke up Sunday with an undeniable reality. Donald Trump's the clear front-runner now for their party's nomination. Trump, celebrated, of course, his big win in South Carolina.”

Bigs Reality Courses Winning Party Clear Fronts Trump Republican South Sunday Runners Carolina Nominations South Carolina

Author:Chris Matthews

“I've never heard anybody [of president's candidates] talk about the poorly educated.”

President Heard Educated Candidates

Author:Chris Matthews

“The Republican Party`s reacting now to the news of [Donald] Trump`s dominance in different ways. For some, they are pushing resistance.”

Way Different Party Trump Republican News Resistance Different Ways Pushing Republican Party Dominance Reacting

Author:Chris Matthews

“I never know what all of these guys are thinking, but Marco Rubio sounded desperate, like, We've got a leak in the dike, we got to stop this thing.”

Thinking Knows Guy Desperate Leaks Marcos

Author:Chris Matthews

“Another wing of the party seems to be putting its hands up. They're not all resisting and accepting the [Donald] Trump - the fact that he could very well win the nomination.”

Wells Facts Hands Seems Winning Party Accepting Trump Wings Resisting Nominations Hands Up

Author:Chris Matthews

“The establishment of the Republican Party, which I've been watching all my life. They always seem to win. I mean, there was the exception, of course, with Goldwater back in '64, which turned out to be a catastrophe. But it always seems that the Mitt Romneys and the East Coast types always end up winning the fights.”

Mean Ends Seems Fighting Courses Winning Party Type Republican East Exception Catastrophe Republican Party Coast Romney East Coast

Author:Chris Matthews

“Whether the Bushes, or whoever they are, they always end up in the end with the money and the ability to really blow away anybody who dares challenge them.”

Ends Challenges Ability Blow Dare

Author:Chris Matthews

“Ben Carson's not really a factor anymore. I hate to say that of anybody, but he isn't a factor anymore.”

Hate I Hate Factors Ben Carson

Author:Chris Matthews

“[Hillary] Clinton was able to assemble a winning Democratic coalition out here, beating Sanders among African-Americans, women, among women, and voters from union households, so, unions, women, African-Americans.”

Able Winning Unions Democratic Clinton African American Voters Household Coalitions

Author:Chris Matthews

“Hillary Clinton did better among working-class whites when she's running against Barack Hussein Obama. How is she doing now against an older, a professor type, who seems very unthreatening, very likable.”

Seems Running Class Type Clinton Barack Professors Working Class Hussein

Author:Chris Matthews

“If Bernie Sanders hasn't been able to draw a contrast with Hillary Clinton, why is he doing so well, a guy - most people never heard of this fellow before this year.”

People Ifs Wells Able Guy Heard Draws Fellows Clinton Contrast

Author:Chris Matthews

“Bernie Sanders even reminded me of the way I felt at parties over the years. You go to a party, you don't know anybody, you sort of wander around. You hold a drink in your hand, you don't know what to do. This poor guy Bernie, he was at a loss with this group of people he didn't know.”

People Knows Way Years Hands Guy Felt Loss Poor Party Groups Drink Wander

Author:Chris Matthews

“Most politicians have to find a way past that allergy. They have to find a way to go door to door, person to person, or else they don't win.”

Way Persons Past Winning Doors Politician Allergies

Author:Chris Matthews

“I think Bernie's [Sanders] setting a direction in the way that [Barry] Goldwater when he lost - I'm not saying he's going to lose. We don't know what is going to happen. It's early. But I think he's already set a lot of themes.”

Thinking Knows Way Happens Lost Loses Setting Settings Theme

Author:Chris Matthews

“[Donald] Trump faces the perhaps accumulation of all the wealth in the world on the head of [Marco] Rubio, because Rubio's the last gasp of hawks and establishment Republicans.”

World Lasts Faces Wealth Trump Republican Establishment Accumulation Hawks Marcos

Author:Chris Matthews

“I`m surprised people are that hopeful about what government can do, because if you believe in socialism, society can run a pretty decent government, it can provide services, it can regulate the economy effectively.”

People Ifs Believe Government Running Can Do Economy Socialism Decent Hopeful If You Believe

Author:Chris Matthews

“A new poll out taken by a Republican group that shows most Democrats prefer socialism to capitalism. Those terms don't mean what they did maybe 40, 50 years ago.”

Years Mean Shows Term Taken Groups Republican Capitalism Years Ago Democrat Socialism Polls

Author:Chris Matthews

“I never wrote off [Donald] Trump.”

Author:Chris Matthews

“While I have questions about the language used in describing the two economic systems, I think people have fairly good gut sense of the difference between socialism and capitalism.”

People Thinking Two Used Language Differences Economic Capitalism Socialism Guts Describing Economic Systems

Author:Chris Matthews

“The fact that younger people are more inclined to socialism may well come with the fact that so many young people's first experience with capitalism is as a debtor.”

People Firsts Wells May Facts Young Capitalism Socialism Debtors

Author:Chris Matthews

“I always thought of him [Jack Kennedy] as a prince, with a charmed life. He was a guy who was sick and in horrendous pain all the time - who would say, "I wish I had a few good days."”

Pain Guy Wish Sick Good Day Charmed Charmed Life Jack Kennedy

Author:Chris Matthews

“How much he was shaped by being in the hospital so much as a kid. Because he was sick, he was a reader, and because he was a reader, Kennedy had heroes. Because he had heroes, he went into politics. [Kennedy liked Sir Walter Scott, King Arthur's knights, and biographies of political leaders.] If he hadn't been sick, he might have been like everybody else in the family, a jock.”

Ifs Has Beens Might Kids Political Leader Reader Kings Hero Sick Hospitals Biographies Might Have Been Knights Arthur Political Leaders Jocks King Arthur

Author:Chris Matthews

About the Author

Born: December 17, 1945
Known for: Commentator
Quotes: 197

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Books & Sources

Tip and the Gipper: When Politics WorkedRelated source material

Now, Let Me Tell You What I Really ThinkRelated source material

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