Chris Matthews Sandbags Ann Coulter With Live Call-In From Elizabeth Edwards

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[Sub-Driver]

Chris Matthews Sandbags Ann Coulter With Live Call-In From Elizabeth Edwards Posted by Geoffrey Dickens on June 26, 2007 - 19:26.

On tonight's Hardball, MSNBC's Chris Matthews blind-sided his guest, conservative columnist Ann Coulter, with a live call from Elizabeth Edwards. The wife of presidential candidate John Edwards, proceeded to demand Coulter to stop her "personal attacks" on her husband, but Coulter shot back that at least she wasn't "bankrupting doctors by giving a shyster, Las Vegas routine."

The following is the full transcript of the exchange as it occurred on the June 26th edition of Hardball:

Chris Matthews: "You know who's on the line? Somebody to respond to what you said about Edwards, yesterday morning, Elizabeth Edwards. She wanted to call in today, we said she could. Elizabeth Edwards go on the line, you're on the line with Ann Coulter."

Elizabeth Edwards: "Hello Chris."

Matthews: "Do you want to say something directly to the person who's with me?"

Edwards: "I was calling, you know, in the South when we, when someone does something that displeases us we want to ask them, politely, to stop doing it. I'd like to ask Ann Coulter to, if she wants to debate on issues, on positions, we certainly disagree with nearly everything she said on your show today. But, but it's quite another matter, to, for these personal attacks. The things she has said over the years, not just about John but about other candidates is, lowers our, our political dialogue, precisely at the time we need to raise it. So I want to use the opportunity, which I don't get much, because Ann and I don't hang out with the same people."

Coulter: "I don't have enough money."

Edwards: "To ask her, politely, to stop the personal attacks."

Coulter: "Okay so I made a joke, let's see, six months ago, and as you point out, they've been raising money off of it, for six months, since then."

Matthews: "But this is just yesterday morning, what you said about him."

Coulter: "I didn't say anything about him, actually, either time."

Edwards: "Ann, Ann you know that's not true. And, and once more, this has been going on for some time."

Coulter: "I don't mind you trying to raise money. I mean it's better this than giving $50,000 speeches to the poor-"

Edwards: "I'm asking you-"

Coulter: "-just to use-

Edwards: "I'm asking you, politely-"

Coulter: "-my name on the Web pages. But as for a debate with me, yeah sure. Yeah we'll have a debate."

Edwards: "I'm asking you, politely, to stop, to stop personal attacks..."

Coulter: "How about you stop raising money on your Web page then? No, you don't have to because, I don't mind."

Edwards: "It didn't start, it did not, it didn't start, it did not start with that. You had a column a number of years ago where you suggested-"

Coulter: "Okay the wife of a presidential candidate-"

Edwards: "Wait till I finish talking please."

Coulter: "-who's calling in and asking me to stop speaking?"

Matthews: "Let her finish the point, let her finish the point."

Coulter: "You're asking me to stop speaking. ‘Stop writing your columns. Stop writing your books.'"

Edwards: "You had a column, you wrote a column several years ago-"

Matthews: "Ann, please."

Coulter: "Okay."

Edwards: "Which made, which made fun of the moment of Charlie Dean's death and suggested that my husband had a bumper sticker on the back of his car that said, ‘Ask me about my dead son.'"

Coulter: "That's now three years ago."

Edwards: "This is not legitimate political dialogue. It debases political dialogue. It draws people away from the process. We can't have a debate about issues if you're using this kind of language."

Coulter responding to audience member: "Yeah why isn't John Edwards making this call?"

Matthews: "Well do you want to respond, while I end this conversation?"

Edwards: "I, I haven't talked to John about this call."

Coulter: "This is just another attempt for-"

Edwards: "I am making this call as a mother. I am, I'm the mother of that boy who died. I, my children participate. These young people behind you are the age of my children, particularly, you're asking them to participate in a dialogue that's based on, on hatefulness and ugliness instead of on the issues and I don't, I don't think that's serving them or this country very well."

[applause]

Matthews: "Thank you very much, Elizabeth Edwards. Well do you, you have all the time in the world to respond to that."

Coulter: "I think, I think we heard all we need to hear. The wife of a presidential candidate is asking me to stop speaking. No."

Matthews: "No, she said you should stop being so negative to people, individually."

Coulter: "Right, as opposed to bankrupting doctors by giving a shyster, Las Vegas routine-"

Matthews: "Okay."

Coulter: "-in front of juries based on science. Wait, you said I'd have as long I would have-"

Matthews: "Go ahead, go ahead, go ahead."

Coulter: "-and you instantly interrupted me. As I was saying, doing these psychic routines in front of illiterate juries to bankrupt doctors, who now can't deliver babies. And to charge a, a poverty group $50,000 for a speech. Don't talk to me about, about how to use language."

Matthews: "Elizabeth?"

Coulter: "That language of hate. And I'm, I, I'm gonna ask you, again, to politely stop using personal attacks as part of your dialogue."

Coulter: "Okay, I'll stop writing books."

Matthews: "Why do you talk about-"

Edwards: "If you can't write them, without them, then that's fine."

Matthews: "Why do talk about Hillary's chubby legs in your book?"

[laughter from audience]

Matthews: "Why do you, I mean, that, that might fall under the category of personal attacks, I don't know, but why do you do that? Why do you talk about Monica Lewinsky's chubbiness? If she were skinny would it had been okay?"

Coulter: "I don't know, read the sentence."

Matthews: "I read the whole sentence, I couldn't feel the context."

Coulter: "Well you have to give it to me and I could explain."

Matthews: "Why do you bring up the word, ‘chubby?' Why do you make fun of Hillary's chubby legs?"

Coulter: "I, I don't know, you're going to have to give me the sentence. And I think-"

Matthews: "It's in the afterward of your book, I just read it this morning."

Coulter: "Well read the sentence!"

Matthews: "We'll, we'll be back and read the entire sentence. We're gonna come right back, I don't know why we're reading, the full intellectual context will be coming in a moment."

Coulter: "Thank you."

[bray]

Bets on whether the fag was sitting next to her while she was on the phone??

Pray for W and Our Troops

[jellybean]

She needs to learn the definition of AD HOMINEM. It means that you attack the person in an argument, not their argument. It is a fallacy and does not prove you correct.

You mean like this:

To: Sub-Driver

Ann is a bitch. She shouldn’t say those things about a dead child. I don’t care how big of an a-hole Edwards is.

110 posted on 06/26/2007 7:55:00 PM CDT by Conservative Youth

She didn't say anything about a dead child. Her comment was about John Edwards using the death of his child to score political points. I find that more dispicable than anything Ann said.

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

I believe that the problem here is that you live in an America where people respect their political opponents and always bear in mind that they are all Americans together. In this America civility marks all political disputes and we all treat each other with brotherly affection. While there is considerable evidence that this America did not really exist (see attacks on Adams, Jefferson, Quincy Adams, Jackson, Lincoln, et. al.) it certainly does not exist now. We seem to be moving to a time when political arguments are settled the way my namesake handled them. Sad, but true!!

[Kickass Conservative]

Ann does not drop to the level of liberals. She uses their hypocrisy against them and throws in a a bit of sarcasm that they are incapable of understanding. You see, when liberals call you a bigot, homophobe, nazi or any number of insults, they mean it with all he hatred they can muster. Coulter just laughs at their ignorance as do I.In other words, e truth hurts liberals. They can’t take it. That is why they lie and twist facts to attack Coulter or anyone else who disagrees with them.

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

It is a little amusing that in all of this rather heated discussion, only one poster has had a post yanked and been banned. This poster was the one making the strongest protestations against ad-hominem attacks. Hint — it is one of those I’m addressing this to.

[HarmlessLovableFuzzball]

This poster was the one making the strongest protestations against ad-hominem attacks. Hint — it is one of those I’m addressing this to.

If a FReeper wants to take a position that goes against the grain, he has to have a certain amount of credibility on FR. I believe I have plenty of it. I don't know about 'conservative youth', but every now and then a liberal signs up on FR as a (phony) conservative, takes a few broad conservative positions and then bashes conservatives on a particular issue(which is the reason he/she signed up for). The point is to get quoted in the liberal media as 'growing dissent among rank and file conservatives'. Old trick from the book, fortunately FReeper admins keep a sharp eye out for them.

[Syncro]

I want to see him do that when he has Hillary, Obama, Edwards on. Let Ann call in and ask them some hard hitting questions. It won’t happen.

5 posted on 06/26/2007 4:46:41 PM PDT by Ron in Acreage (Conservative 1st, republican sometime)

[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies | Report Abuse ]

Yea, like that would happen...LOL

So...did he ever read the sentence? What was it?

15 posted on 06/26/2007 4:49:14 PM PDT by truthkeeper (It's the borders, stupid.)

Yup, as can be seen in this video

[Ron in Acreage]

I want to see him do that when he has Hillary, Obama, Edwards on. Let Ann call in and ask them some hard hitting questions. It won’t happen.

[truthkeeper]

So...did he ever read the sentence? What was it?

[flat]

i got up early to watch THE MAGNIFICENT ANN’s hardball perfomance 6/26/07.

jees after that hour i think cris mathews better get some ointment to apply to the multiple bruises ANN administered about his head and his shoulders..... it was
the quintessential ANN COULTER....it doesnt get any better than this folks.

criss yipped and criss yapped each time it happened ANN landed excruciating knock out punches it was fascinating; and it happened OVER AND OVER AND OVER again....he just kept gettin hit....she should put copys of this one on her website and charge money for it.

i don’t know if CRISS’ show is at the bottom of the drive by tv talker list or not (heh heh yes i do...haaha and i know WHY......113 lb women beat him uppppp! bwhahaah)

then it was JOHNNE E’S wife’s turn..the show then became ‘the evening of criss’ horribly backfired ambush’ ...more bruises....and more ANN HANDLling.

anybody who wants to enjoy a fun filled hour get a tivo copy of this GREAT WOMAN’S killer appearance tonight.

i will say this i’m kind of getting around to liking criss mathhews maybe just an iota..why?

that kid sure can take a punch...BWHAHAHAHAAA!
(and coming from an intellectual heavyweight like our ANN...its amazing to me he remained on his feet tonight)

[Lucius Cornelius Sulla]

I believe I have plenty of it.

I agree!

[HarmlessLovableFuzzball]

She has absolutely nothing productive to offer - only catty comments, and self-absorbed rants.

None at all. She never comes up with an original idea, an original thought or an original analysis...nothing that hasn't already been said by other conservative commentators. She sells herself as the equivalent of a shock jock from the right--a blond chick who says 'outrageous' things. I normally don't pay much attention to what she says ,but her bumper sticker idea "ask me about my dead son" (however lowly scumbags the Edwards' are, they did lose their 15 year old son)...that just hit a new low. This woman is mean, small and as far as I am concerned, an embarrassment to conservatives.

[Syncro]

but every now and then a liberal signs up on FR as a (phony) conservative, takes a few broad conservative positions and then bashes conservatives on a particular issue(which is the reason he/she signed up for). The point is to get quoted in the liberal media as 'growing dissent among rank and file conservatives'. Old trick from the book, fortunately FReeper admins keep a sharp eye out for them.

No comment.

She never comes up with an original idea, an original thought or an original analysis...nothing that hasn't already been said by other conservative commentators. She sells herself as the equivalent of a shock jock from the right--a blond chick who says 'outrageous' things. I normally don't pay much attention to what she says ,but her bumper sticker idea "ask me about my dead son" (however lowly scumbags the Edwards' are, they did lose their 15 year old son)...that just hit a new low. This woman is mean, small and as far as I am concerned, an embarrassment to conservatives.

Edwards used his "dead son" for political purposes. Coulter ("a blond chick") called him on it. You are not the only one that bought into it.

Edwards got a lot of mileage out of that, as well as off of the medical condition of his wife.

This comment really made me laugh:

"She sells herself as the equivalent of a shock jock from the right"

[Star Traveler]

He was busy combing his hair....

[Syncro]

Oops, this video should have had a link to it.

Link

From This Thread

[Star Traveler]

Yeah..., Elizabeth Edwards, with her fake, “let’s all play nice” while (as Coulter points out), Edwards himself is stealing his money from manipulating the legal process (plus was probably combing his hair while his wife called) — is this “syrupy sweet” pretense that Dummycrats have, while stabbing everyone in the back that they can, when they can, when no one is looking (or while being cheered on by other Dummycrats) ... Yep..., Elizabeth Edwards is certainly the paragon of virtue to look up to...

[Star Traveler]

We certainly need more Ann Coulters around to set people straight on what the Dummycrats are doing... That was a great clip... LOL...

[Bernard]

Jeesh, Elizabeth Edwards is hot damn creepy. Does she remember she has two living children to care for?

She and her hsuband have used his ill-gotten gains from bogus lawsuits tobuild a big house in the country; since she may not live long enough to actually see him get elected, she needs to build a legacy now. The living children seem to be trophy kids, who are brought out for photo opps when convenient.

[NCLaw441]

You said: I will have to side with Mrs Edwards on a small part of her argument. The Breck Girl is the scum of the earth, but for Ann to use the phrase “ask me about my dead son” not only brings her out as a cheap publicity whore out to sell books and speeches, it cheapens the conservative argument and the conservative movement.
***

The reference to that imaginery bumper sticker was to call attention to Edwards using his son’s death in his campaign to gain sympathy and, he hoped, votes. His son’s death was not related to any campaign issue. He used it solely to get sympathy. Coulter (crudely) called him on it. No one else seemed to call Edwards on his use of his dead son at the time.

Our local tv station affiliated with NBC used a portion of the Hardball tape this morning, introducing it with the claim that Coulter said that she wished Edwards had died on 9/11. Did she actually say that?

[ZULU]

“She’s not an intelligent representative of the conservative movement. She’s an idiot.”

Guess you proved how bright you’re not!

Grow up!

Ann is the kind of attack person the COnservatives need. You fight people on their own level and taking the High Road has only led Republicans and conservatives to defeat and self-destruction.

[FreedomPoster]

Different networks.