Wes Vernon, NewsMax.com
Friday, Feb. 1, 2002

Speaking Thursday at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), he described President Bush, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and other top administration officials as the leaders – "the adult drivers of the car.”

He cited polls showing higher ratings for the president and Cabinet officials than for senators.

Matthews, who worked in the past for such Democrats as President Jimmy Carter and House Speaker Tip O’Neill, said today’s Senate Democrats can’t compare with such "perennially optimistic” Democrats of the past such as John Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey.

Today’s U.S. Senate is "packed with kids in the back seat,” the host of TV's "Hardball” declared.

'Lined Up With Clinton's Lies'

"Every damn one of them lined up with Clinton’s lies,” he added.

For those who complain of U.S. treatment of murderous terrorists held at Guantanamo base in Cuba, Matthews asked, "Did any of them complain of the treatment by the communists in Vietnam to American POWs such as Senator McCain?

"No,” he answered, "because in that case, the offenders were on the left.”

Some C-PAC attendees expressed surprise at Matthews' comments, given that he recently urged Democrats to slam Republicans on Enron, deserved or not.

At the same conference, another commentator, conservative Fred Barnes, cited polls showing that in his 29 years of political reporting, "the Republicans have never looked better. Never!”

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:

Bush Administration

Clinton Scandals

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