>>> FEAR AND HATRED. LET’S PLAY "HARDBALL."
>> GOOD EVENING.
I’M CHRIS MATTHEWS FROM
WASHINGTON.
WASHINGTON. I’VE GOT BREAKING NEWS FROM THE
CAPITOL.
CAPITOL. THE U.S. HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED
STATES HAS VOTED MOMENTS AGO TO
CONDEMN THE PRESIDENT OF THE
UNITED STATES FOR HAVING, QUOTE,
LEGITIMIZED FEAR AND HATRED OF
NEW AMERICANS AND PEOPLE OF
COLOR.
COLOR. THE RESOLUTION FOLLOWED THE
PRESIDENT’S RACIST COMMENTS
ABOUT FOUR CONGRESSWOMEN OF
COLOR.
COLOR. THE VOTE POSED AS A RECKONING
FOR REPUBLICANS.
FOR REPUBLICANS. IT FORCED EACH OF THEM TO SAY ON
THE RECORD WHETHER THEY CONDEMN
THE PRESIDENT’S REMARKS OR NOT,
AND ONLY FOUR OF THOSE
REPUBLICANS DID CONDEMN THEM.
THEY WERE WILL HURD OF TEXAS,
SUSAN BROOKS OF INDIANA AND
BRIAN FITZPATRICK OF
PENNSYLVANIA.
PENNSYLVANIA. HOUSE MINORITY LEADER WHIP
STEPHEN SCALISE OF LOUISIANA AND
DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSMAN JOHN
LEWIS EACH MADE CLOSING
ARGUMENTS FOR EACH SIDE BEFORE
THE VOTE.
THE VOTE. LET’S WATCH.
LET’S WATCH. >> RATHER THAN ENGAGING IN THIS
CONSTANT BARRAGE OF PERSONALITY
ATTACK THAT WE’VE SEEN WEEK
AFTER WEEK AFTER WEEK, THE
AMERICAN PEOPLE EXPECT US TO BE
SPENDING OUR TIME UP HERE
FIGHTING FOR THE ISSUES THEY
CARE ABOUT, AND THESE ARE EASY
ISSUES FOR US TO SOLVE IF WE
COME TOGETHER AND SPEND REALTIME
IN GOOD FAITH WORKING ON THEM.
RATHER THAN THIS FOOLISHNESS.
>> I RISE WITH A SENSE OF
RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION TO SUPPORT
THIS RESOLUTION.
THIS RESOLUTION. I KNOW RACISM WHEN I SEE IT.
I KNOW RACISM WHEN I FEEL IT.
AND AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL OF
GOVERNMENT, THERE IS NO ROOM FOR
RACISM.
RACISM. >> WELL, THE REBUKE TO THE
PRESIDENT COMES AFTER HE TRIPLED
DOWN ON HIS RACIST ATTACKS AGAIN
TODAY, SAYING THAT THOSE FOUR
WOMEN OF CONGRESS HATE THEIR
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. >> THE DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSWOMEN
SHOULD LEAVE IF THEY’RE NOT
HAPPY.
HAPPY. WHERE SHOULD THEY GO?
>> IT’S UP TO THEM.
GO WHEREVER THEY WANT, WHEREVER
THEY CAN STAY.
BUT THEY SHOULD LOVE OUR
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. THEY SHOULDN’T HATE OUR COUNTRY.
AND THE WAY THEY’RE TREATING
ISRAEL IS A DISGRACE.
BUT NOT ONLY ISRAEL, IT’S WHAT
THEY SAY ABOUT OUR COUNTRY.
IT’S MY OPINION THEY HATE OUR
COUNTRY, AND THAT’S NOT GOOD.
IT’S NOT ACCEPTABLE.
>> WELL, TRUMP ALSO INSISTS ON
TWITTER THAT THOSE TWEETS WERE
NOT RACIST.
NOT RACIST. I DON’T HAVE A RACIST BONE IN MY
BODY.
BODY. THE SO-CALLED VOTE IS TO BE
TAKEN IS A DEMOCRAT CON GAME.
REPUBLICANS SHOULD NOT SHOW
WEAKNESS AND FALL INTO THEIR
TRAP.
TRAP. THAT’S ALL TRUMP TALKING THERE.
HOUSE MINORITY LEADER KEVIN
McCARTHY WAS QUICK TO ENDORSE
TRUMP’S BEHAVIOR THIS MORNING.
>> WERE THE PRESIDENT’S TWEETS
THAT SAID GO BACK RACIST?
YES, OR NO.
>> NO.
>> NO. I BELIEVE THIS IS ABOUT
IDEOLOGY.
IDEOLOGY. THIS IS ABOUT SOCIALISM VERSUS
FREEDOM.
FREEDOM. >> LIKEWISE, SENATE MAJORITY
LEADER MITCH McCONNELL DEFENDED
THE PRESIDENT AND SAID BOTH
SIDES ARE TO BLAME.
>> I THINK EVERYBODY OUGHT TO
TONE DOWN THEIR RHETORIC.
WE HAVE EXAMPLES OF THAT ACROSS
THE IDEOLOGICAL SPECTRUM IN THE
COUNTRY, ALL ACROSS IT, EVERYONE
OUGHT TO TONE DOWN THEIR
RHETORIC AND WE OUGHT TO MOVE
BACK TO TALKING ABOUT THE
ISSUES.
ISSUES. >> BUT YOU’VE STOPPED SHORT OF
CALLING HIS COMMENTS RACIST?
>> WELL, THE PRESIDENT IS NOT A
RACIST.
RACIST. THE PRESIDENT IS NOT A RACIST.
AND I THINK THE TONE OF ALL OF
THIS IS NOT GOOD FOR THE
COUNTRY.
COUNTRY. >> I’M JOINED NOW BY TWO
DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSMEN, DAVID
CICILLINE OF RHODE ISLAND.
CONGRESSMAN CICILLINE, YOU
START.
START. JACK KENNEDY WHEN HE WAS
PRESIDENT SAID SOMETIMES PARTY
LOYALTY ASKS TOO MUCH.
I DON’T UNDERSTAND THESE
REPUBLICANS.
REPUBLICANS. THERE IS A CHANCE THEY SAY I
LIKE HIS TAX CUTS.
I LIKE HUSBAND DEREGULATION.
I DON’T LIKE HIS PERSONAL
BEHAVIOR.
BEHAVIOR. THIS WAS ABOUT HIS PERSONAL
BEHAVIOR, AND THEY VOTED WITH
HIM LIKE LEMMINGS.
YOUR THOUGHTS?
YOUR THOUGHTS? >> YEAH, IT’S VERY
DISAPPOINTING.
DISAPPOINTING. THIS IS REALLY A SAD VOTE IN
MANY WAYS.
MANY WAYS. WE ONLY HAD FOUR REPUBLICANS WHO
WERE WILLING TO SHOW THE COURAGE
OF THEIR CONVICTIONS TO SPEAK UP
AND CONDEMN THIS RACIST LANGUAGE
IN STRONG TERMS.
THE PRESIDENT EVIDENCED HE
DOESN’T UNDERSTAND WHAT IS
REALLY GREAT ABOUT THIS COUNTRY
AND THAT IS OUR DIVERSITY, THE
FACT THAT AMERICA IS A WELCOMING
PLACE FOR PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER
THE WORLD.
THE WORLD. THE IDEA SAYING GO BACK TO YOUR
COUNTRY IS ONE OF THE OLDEST,
RACIST TROPE THERE’S.
IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN CONDEMNED BY
EVERY AMERICAN.
EVERY AMERICAN. IT’S UNAMERICAN.
IT’S UNAMERICAN. IT WAS DISGUSTING.
THE PRESIDENT OWES THEM AN
APOLOGY.
APOLOGY. OWES THE AMERICAN PEOPLE AN
APOLOGY.
APOLOGY. >> CONGRESSMAN LIU, YOU SAID
SOMETHING VERY POWERFUL ON THIS.
I WISH YOU WOULD SAY IT AGAIN.
>> THANK YOU, CHRIS, FOR YOUR
QUESTIONS.
QUESTIONS. SO LIKE MANY PEOPLE IN AMERICA,
I’M AN IMMIGRANT.
I ALSO SERVED ON ACTIVE DUTY IN
THE UNITED STATES MILITARY
BECAUSE I LOVE AMERICA, AND YET
PEOPLE HAVE TOLD ME TO GO BACK
TO CHINA OR JAPAN OR NORTH
KOREA, AND IT’S VERY HURTFUL
WHEN THAT HAPPENS.
LIKE MANY IMMIGRANTS, WHEN WE
GET THAT GO BACK INSULT, WE FEEL
THAT WE DON’T BELONG HERE IN
AMERICA.
AMERICA. AND MAKE NO MISTAKE, THE GO BACK
INSULT IS FLAT-OUT RACIST
BECAUSE IT’S BASED ON RACE.
IF I WAS WHITE, PEOPLE WOULDN’T
TELL ME TO GO BACK TO CHINA.
THEY TELL ME BECAUSE I HAPPEN TO
BE OF ASIAN RACE.
BUT WHAT’S GOOD IS AMERICANS NOW
REALIZE THAT IMMIGRATION IS A
GOOD THING.
GOOD THING. WE HAVE HIGH SUPPORT FOR
IMMIGRATION.
IMMIGRATION. IN FACT, RECORD HIGHS ACCORDING