Chris Matthews Thinks Black Americans and College Grads Aren't "Regular People"

It was, of course, an incredibly odd thing to say. First, it’s not at all clear why we should “wonder” about someone who’s a bad bowler. And second, it certainly sounded as if Matthews — while getting “ethnic” — believes black people are necessarily good at basketball.

With this one under his belt, Matthews decided to dabble in some more bizarre racial talk again yesterday.

For those who can’t watch clips online, Matthews asked Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO): “Let me ask you about how he — how’s he connect with regular people? Does he? Or does he only appeal to people who come from the African-American community and from the people who have college or advanced degrees?”

It’s hard to know where to start with something like this.

Let’s see, what’s the most offensive angle here:

a) that Matthews makes a distinction between the African-American community and those with college degrees; or

b) that Matthews believes only whites with high school diplomas qualify as “regular people”?

And as long as we’re asking Matthews-related questions, here’s another: how does this guy stay on the air?

I know a lot of people want to watch clips but can’t from their work computers, so here’s the transcript of the relevant exchange, as per the fine folks at Media Matters. I’d just add that Matthews seemed rather nonchalant about what he was saying, as if it were perfectly reasonable.