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It hasn't been a great few weeks for MSNBC anchor Chris Matthews.
Fresh off the heels of comparing the caucus victory of Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT) in Nevada to France's surrender to Nazi Germany in World War II, Matthews is now being accused of sexism for his questioning of Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) in the MSNBC spin room after Tuesday night's Democratic Debate.
On the debate stage, Warren brought up allegations against fellow candidate and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The Senator cited a lawsuit brought against Bloomberg in the late '90s by a female employee, who stated that Bloomberg told her to "kill it" when she told him that she was pregnant.
When questioning Warren about the allegation, Matthews seemed flummoxed at why she would believe the woman.
Watch below.
Chris Matthews asks Elizabeth Warren why she believes a female employee who sued Mike Bloomberg for telling her "ki… https://t.co/Ralf4lIJlh— Justin Baragona (@Justin Baragona)1582690477.0
When the MSNBC anchor asked Warren if she believed that Bloomberg said "kill it" to a pregnant employee, Warren responded:
"Well, a pregnant employee sure said that he did. Why shouldn't I believe her. I'm just really tired of this world, this one is personal for me—"
Matthews interrupted her with:
"You believe he's that kind of person who did that?"
Warren responded:
"Look, pregnancy discrimination is real. We have gone on and on and on where people say, 'I can't really believe the woman'."
"Really? Why not?"
"Mayor Bloomberg has non-disclosure agreements for who knows how many women, it's not just the one. The whole point is how can you actually trust someone who will not just say, 'Look, I'm gonna waive on non-disclosure on sexual harassment and discrimination. Anyone who has a story to tell can come tell their story'."
Matthews then asked Warren repeatedly if she believed Bloomberg was lying, before asking:
"Why would he lie?"
Warren responded:
"Why would she lie? That's the question, Chris. Why do you assume that he's the guy—"
Then Matthews interrupted Warren yet again.
Putting aside the suspension of disbelief required to think a woman suing a man worth over $60 billion has more reason to lie than the billionaire has reason to cover it up, there were witnesses to the woman's claims.
David Zielenziger, a former Bloomberg technology writer, told the Washington Post that he heard the conversation in… https://t.co/fBobUthoPT— Scott Bixby (@Scott Bixby)1582691018.0
People called out Matthews's automatic skepticism of the woman coupled with his incredulity that scrutiny of Bloomberg was warranted.
I still can't get over this and the fact that for men like Chris Matthews, the default is the woman is a liar. We a… https://t.co/7jwaNt6Lhf— Jennifer Hayden (@Jennifer Hayden)1582730434.0
This is rape culture in one clip. https://t.co/OJnjOuxqxp— Stacy Parker LeMelle (@Stacy Parker LeMelle)1582721046.0
Warren is great here. & Matthews is particularly ridiculous bc he’s clearly not even familiar with the story — the… https://t.co/rPUsmYOqHu— Emily Nussbaum (@Emily Nussbaum)1582698482.0
Chris Matthews being incredulously surprised at the idea a rich and powerful person might lie about their bad behav… https://t.co/fZGZCA7yaB— Mike Duncan (@Mike Duncan)1582714959.0
That moment of stunned silence on Matthews when Warren says “why would SHE lie?” Tells you everything you need to… https://t.co/pysLsUKxRv— Jessica Ellis (@Jessica Ellis)1582732043.0
If Chris Matthews seems a little defensive in this exchange about female employees accusing someone of making inapp… https://t.co/yaPW69TX0P— Elizabeth May (@Elizabeth May)1582713890.0
This is a real time example of why women don't speak out about rape, harassment, discrimination and everything else… https://t.co/ShkkHya8wk— Amee Vanderpool (@Amee Vanderpool)1582718528.0
It's unclear whether Matthews has asked Bloomberg about the comments with the same skepticism.