While he deserves some credit for devoted his "Let Me Finish" closing commentary segment to praising Philadelphia police officer Jesse Hartnett, Hardball host Chris Matthews curiously omitted any reference to the fact that the attacker, Edward Archer, told authorities that he was motivated by his allegiance to ISIS and his hatred of cops for enforcing laws that counter the teachings of the Koran.
Here's are the relevant transcript and video:
MSNBC
Hardball
Jan. 11, 2016
CHRIS MATTHEWS: Let me finish tonight with a story of public service and personal bravery. You know, with all the bad stories about police work of late, I was thrilled to see the real-life account of a Philadelphia police officer's grace under pressure.
Since so much good day-to-day, night-to-night police work goes unnoticed and unpraised I was glad too to see it all on television.
We've all seen the surveillance tape by now of the assailant on that west Philadelphia street shoving his arm in the squad car, his getting off at least 11 shots at point-blank range at the police officer inside. And yet, and yet we saw -- all of us saw too what followed.
We saw the police officer seriously wounded with three bullets in him pulling himself from the car, racing up the street past the camera after the assailant he knew to be armed and mortally dangerous. Finally firing a shot that caught the fugitive and led to his arrest by Officer Hartnett's backup, who arrived on the scene.
Police Commissioner Richard Ross said he couldn't say enough about how officer Hartnett conducted himself. Perhaps this is how all police officers are expected to act under fire. Perhaps it comes with their training and approach to the difficult, dangerous job they have. But when you see it right there in front of you, when you see the guts of this guy recorded on camera, you have to ask, where do we find such men?
It tells us that even in a dangerous world with street crime and terrorism about us, we have real public servants ready to take it on, all of it, to fight the bad guys on their own rotten terms, that even with the criminal able to set the time and place, to demonstrate for all of us, to see the God-given instinct to defy the danger, to fight back, to confront the attacker, even on the worst of nights and save justice for us all.
Here's to officer Jesse Hartnett of the Philadelphia Police Department. Get well. Thank you for your service, and your courage.
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