MSNBC’s Mehdi Hasan Shocked to Hear Black People Are Allowed to Vote

MSNBC is proof that the beloved cartoon Looney Tunes has been rebooted as a live-action television channel. But, all kidding aside, a day doesn’t go by that I don’t hear something obnoxious from this self-purported news channel.

This time the example of blatant insanity comes from “Morning Joe,” where a spirited debate between Mehdi Hasan and Shadi Hamid took place regarding the usual battle cry of the liberals: the imminent destruction of democracy.

You might recognize the name Shadi Hamid; I reported earlier about his segment with Jen Psaki, where he correctly explained that we all must learn to live in the same space as those who disagree with us.

Mr. Hamid might be the only reason to tune in to the channel, frankly. His latest endeavor was to explain that the liberal rhetoric around saving democracy might be causing more harm than good; imagine that.

.@mehdirhasan: “Do you believe the 2024 election will be a free and fair election if Black people are denied the right to vote?”
@shadihamid: “Black people are denied the right to vote? That’s the first I’ve heard…”

Mehdi: “Sorry, what?”

Watch the convo from @Morning_Joe: pic.twitter.com/cR8VIaKkRK

— The Mehdi Hasan Show (@MehdiHasanShow) October 26, 2022

Wait… Black People Can’t Vote?

The exchange that initially caught my attention was a question Mr. Hasan posed to Mr. Hamid:

“Do you believe the 2024 election will be a free and fair election if black people are denied the right to vote?”

Mr. Hamid’s response is admirable and might have convinced me to buy his book, The Problem of Democracy: America, the Middle East, and the Rise and Fall of an Idea:

“Black people are denied the right to vote? That’s the first I’ve heard…”

You can’t hear the rest of what Mr. Hamid says because, in typical wig-out fashion, Mr. Hasan feigns shock. This particular back-and-forth highlights what the Democrats continue pushing even though all evidence points to the contrary.

Black Voters in Georgia have done it again! Voter turnout in Georgia reached historic highs on the first day of early voting in this midterm election, and Black Voters comprised 35% of all those who turned out to vote.

— Black Voters Matter Fund (@BlackVotersMtr) October 21, 2022

Just Because You Can Vote Doesn’t Mean You Can Vote

There has been record voter turnout in states that have early voting for the midterms, particularly in Georgia. But that doesn’t matter to Hasan, or Stacey Abrams, who is already teeing up her argument against conceding if she loses to Governor Kemp:

“…it is wrong to suggest that there is a correlation between voter turnout and voter suppression because suppression is about barriers.”

On the flip side, her campaign manager Lauren Groh-Wargo states:

“More black men have voted early in person in raw numbers in 2022 than 2020 or 2018 at the same point.”

So wait a second… let me get this straight: the state that the White House called “Jim Crow 2.0” is seeing the largest early voter turnout to include black voters… but it’s still voter suppression?

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre explains:

“Speaking generally, of course, more broadly, of course, high turnout and voter suppression can take place at the same time.”

Oh, OK, I see now. The fact that more people are coming out to vote early, no less, doesn’t mean there aren’t significant barriers to voting.

Oh, wait, no, that doesn’t make any sense. But for Democrats, that doesn’t matter; it’s interesting how they seem to be primed and ready to deny election results before they are even available.

When @shadihamid told Mehdi Hasan that African Americans have a right to vote in 2022, Hasan replied, “Have you been to Georgia lately, Shadi?” Has Mehdi? Here’s early vote in some of Georgias largest counties, via @AJC pic.twitter.com/6l9gBV6v3Q

— Zaid Jilani (@ZaidJilani) October 27, 2022

So Much Sense

I wish I could’ve heard more from Mr. Hamid, but unfortunately, Mr. Hasan made it very difficult to catch what his counterpart had to say. I caught an exchange regarding this alleged attack on democracy that Democrats keep speaking about.

Mr. Hamid brings up that when liberals (and I would argue the media in general), continue to push this argument that there is a threat to democracy that, they will attempt to justify:

“…extraordinary measures to suppress that threat.”

He continues to explain that a real threat is that justification that could lead to:

“…suppressing democracy in order to save it.”

He brings it home at the end when he hits the bullseye on what truly is a danger to our democracy:

“I worry your rhetoric can lead us to do things we shouldn’t do in a democratic context and for us as liberals to go too far into demonizing our opponents and the other side.”

That’s one intelligent level-headed liberal; he doesn’t know he’s on MSNBC, right?

Me: “[Trump] is not just anti-immigration, he wanted to build a moat, put alligators in it, & shoot migrants in the legs. If that is not fascism I don’t know what is.”
Shadi Hamid: “Okay, well I didn’t hear about the alligators thing…”

Watch our debate:pic.twitter.com/ox6DCKQrZZ

— Mehdi Hasan (@mehdirhasan) October 27, 2022

Example After Example

You can turn on the television or check Twitter at any given time on any given day and find examples of this same kind of rhetoric that Mr. Hamid is referencing. Mehdi Hasan is well known for it and had no problem going after Republicans who congratulated the new Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni:

“What’s been so depressing is to see so much of the, quote unquote, liberal media, the mainstream media, the MSM, giving a pass to Meloni, or playing down her and her party’s fascist roots, focusing more on the fact that she’s female, and less on the fact that she’s, you know, fascistic.”

There’s that word… fascist. It feels like these pundits have a list of names to call conservatives and cycle through them in the hopes it’ll stick.

I find it depressing to see so much of the quote-unquote, liberal progressive media not gushing over the first female Prime Minister of Italy as much as they did the first female Vice President of the United States.

Instead, they focused on Harris’ gender and minority status and less on the fact that she’s, you know, incompetent.

How long until Joy Reid blames John Fetterman’s stroke on white supremacy?

— Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) October 26, 2022

Then you have Joy Reid, who summed up the only reason she believes anyone would choose not to vote for a Democrat:

“It’s terrifying how many Americans will choose literal fascism, female serfdom, climate collapse and the reversal of everything from social security and Medicare to student loan relief because they think giving Republicans the power to investigate Hunter Biden will bring down gas prices.”

How incredibly tone-deaf and disconnected from reality is Joy Reid? People aren’t voting for Republicans because of Hunter Biden. However, it’s fair to want to know what his father, who is the leader of the free world, knew and didn’t know about Hunter’s dealings.

People are voting for Republicans because they can’t afford groceries. They have to work an extra ten years into their 70s because they’ve lost a quarter of their retirement savings. They are voting for Republicans because they feel unsafe walking in the neighborhood, and a thousand other real reasons.

But keep telling us how we are the fascists and how we are a threat to democracy. I’m sure that will serve you well in the upcoming elections.

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