MSNBC's Chris Matthews apologizes to Bernie Sanders over 'France's fall to Nazi' analogy after Nevada win
MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews went after Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders following his emphatic win in the Nevada Democratic Caucuses on February 22 by likening it with the fall of France to Nazi Germany in the Second World War (1939-45). But his remark did not go down well with supporters and after facing a backlash, the 74-year-old apologized to the veteran over his controversial analogy.
"I'm reading last night about the fall of France in the summer of 1940," Matthews said after Sanders' win. "And the general, Reynaud, calls up Churchill and says, 'It's over.' And Churchill says, 'How can it be? You've got the greatest army in Europe. How can it be over?' He said, 'It's over.'"
Speaking at the beginning of his show “Hardball”, Matthews conceded that his analogy was indeed a “bad one”. “As I watched the one-sided results of Saturday's Democratic caucus in Nevada, I reached for an historical analogy — and used a bad one,” the famed liberal host said.
"Senator Sanders, I'm sorry for comparing anything from that tragic era, in which so many suffered, especially the Jewish people, to an electoral result in which you were the well-deserved winner," he added in his statement.
Sanders continued his good run in the primaries by bagging New Hampshire and Nevada after finishing a close second to former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg in Iowa.
The experts were stunned to see him winning almost 47 percent of the votes and 24 delegates. Matthews then made the infamous analogy.
Leftists lashed out at him asking him to go out of job, either through retirement or sacking. Matthews also acknowledged that the Democratic primary battle will be a hard-fought one and promised to do a “better job” himself in the upcoming days.
Matthews has been known to be a staunch critic of Sanders for he favors the more centrist path in the Democratic Party. He had even said once that he would have been shot by communists had they won the Cold War.
Sanders’ supporters expect their leader to bag yet another primary in South Carolina this Saturday (February 29), the last battle before the Super Tuesday on March 3.
Sanders’ campaign is based on socialist ideals and his wins have shocked several Democrats who feel that the party would slide further if the 78-year-old goes on to clinch the presidential nomination to take on President Donald Trump in November.