MSNBC’s Chris Matthews said Hillary Clinton “can’t say ‘what difference does it make'” in her Tuesday press conference.
Matthews added that Clinton needs to answer with facts and not “an essay contest,” adding that everyone will be “back to where we were” after the press conference.
ROBERTS: This is a tight walk that Hillary Clinton is about to go out on. How perfect does she need to execute describing the purpose of this private email?
MATTHEWS: I don’t think it’s about words, Thomas. I don’t think it’s about words. She’s not a commentator on television, like I am. She has to answer questions about facts that she knows about decisions she has to make. Will she release her server, which has all of the information, all of the e-mails on that. If she does not do it today, she’ll have too do it at some point in the future or else, her critics, not just her critics, people who have questions about her in the middle politically that are straight reporters, will ask well why not. And the Republicans who don’t like her will be able to say right through the next election as she’s a candidate, presumably, you never gave us your information, your e-mails. Therefore we can’t say what you were hiding about whatever it is, whether it’s Benghazi, whatever issue they are concerned about. They’ll say ‘you’ve kept that.’
There’s a dynamic at work here, and she, having worked as a young attorney in the Nixon committee in the ’70s, she knows how it works. Once it’s out that you have tapes, like Nixon did, or once it’s out that you have an email system, your own server that you set up, people will want to see it. You can’t say what difference does it make, because at this point people want the information. She’s either going to give us the information or not. How she comments today about why she did it is an essay contest. Nobody cares, this has gotten to the point of facts now.
The other question they might hit her on today: are you going to give back this money to these foreign governments that do not treat women well? Are you going to give the money back or not? These are factual questions. Will you release your serve? Will you give back the money?…I don’t have the greatest confidence in ability to focus in on these questions. We’ll have to see how good the questioning is. Will it be professional and nail these questions down or will it simply give her a chance to speak for five or ten minutes with prepared talking points which takes us back to where we were. We’re not getting very far with this.