Poet Sylvia Plath was famous for writing, "Every woman adores a fascist." During his most-recent on-air love fest with Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani, MSNBC's Chris Matthews took poetic license to apply that characteristic to the entire electorate.
On MSNBC's Imus in the Morning, the Hardball host gushed praise on the former New York City mayor's aggressive law enforcement and quality of life campaigns.
MATTHEWS: And this guy cleaned it up, and he made you feel like you had a right to walk the street safely. I think he did a great job. I'm sorry. And I think the country wants a boss like that. You know, a little bit of fascism there. Just a little bit. Just a pinch of it.
Ironic that Matthews would compare the Giuliani Administration's anti-crime legacy to "a little bit of fascism" because that is what exactly many critics have maintained—especially in the wake of the Amadou Diallo, Patrick Dorismond and Abner Louima cases.
However, the giddy television host ended his love letter with some words that we found strangely comforting:
I'm so sick of Southern guys with ranches running this country. I want a guy to run for president who doesn't have a fucking—I'm sorry—a ranch. Wouldn't that be good? A guy who wasn't on the ranch during Katrina.
Some Background ...
Rudy's "Testosterone Factor" (Rod 2.0) News: Rudy and McCain Court Anti-Gays (Rod 2.0) Giuliani: Pro-Gay Views "Not the Issue" (Rod 2.0) News: Giuliani's Not-So-Secret Plan (Rod 2.0) News: Giuliani's In, Feingold's Out (Rod 2.0)
Ha! Sure, I can get my news from lots of sources, web and otherwise, but only HERE do I get a quote from Ms. Plath. Brilliant, Rod.
Posted by: Andy in Seattle | 08 February 2007 at 15:10
And the piquant quality of placing a Sylvia Plath quote ALONG WITH one by Mistah Chris Matthews... and yeh..he's GIDDY indeed!
Posted by: James N | 08 February 2007 at 21:11
Let's understand something. Giuliani has always had a little Fascism (caps intended: "Giuliani" is an Italian last name after all) in him. He was a Fascist when he was a prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, where he preferred to try his cases in the news media instead of the court room. He was notorious for having his white collar indictees arrested in their offices during work hours, with news media cameras in tow, of course. One thing you knew about Giuliania: never get between him and a "news" camera.
The material about Louima and Diallou is well known, and quite regrettable. Rudy set the tone, and that's what the tone led to. Matthews's comment on the "Don I'm An Ass In The Morning" show is stupid as heck, and reflects the fact that he doesn't know that crime was going down everywhere, not just in NYC, and that Rudy and his fascism had nothing to do with it.
Posted by: raj | 09 February 2007 at 05:36