On his Friday show, “Hardball” host Chris Matthews offered an unexpected tribute to Pat Buchanan, who he had worked with at MSNBC for the last 10 years. Although on the opposite end of the political spectrum from Buchanan, Matthews echoed the sentiments of MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough, telling his viewers that he would miss the conservative commentator.
“Let me finish tonight with Pat Buchanan,” Matthews said. “He’s leaving the network and won’t be working with us from now on. I miss him already.’
“We’ve had drag-down fights right here on this set, and I’ve said things that drive him up a wall, and he’s said things that have driven me up a wall. We’ve done it here in all, pretty good — in a pretty good spirit most of the time — and have managed to be friendly and friends throughout it all. And, obviously, I’m going to miss his cheerful, fun-loving irascible presence around here.”
Matthews explained that while one side of Buchanan was positive, the other was not nearly as lovable.
“There are two aspects of Pat Buchanan I’d like to mention,” he continued. “One highly and wonderfully positive; the other — well, that’s the one that gets him into trouble. The good quality above his relentless genialities is deep, even formidable, loyalty. Pat sticks up for his people like nobody I know. He’ll laugh with you about the frailties and foibles of those he served but he never, ever quits being loyal to them.”
Matthews played clips of Buchanan testifying in 1973 before the U.S. Senate Watergate committee, which he said demonstrated that “formidable loyalty.” But he also noted his controversial 1992 Republican National Convention “culture war” speech.
“It’s Pat Buchanan yesterday, today and tomorrow, but for all kinds of reasons, personal and professional, I will miss him,” Matthews added.