Actor Matthew McConaughey may have left fans dazed and confused in a political discussion with podcast host Russell Brand.
The Dallas Buyers Club actor accused the “illiberal left” of condescending to the right and proposed a scientific approach to meeting in the middle.
Russell asked Matthew if he noticed a “condemnation and criticism of what I might describe ordinary working people ... a kind of offhandedness, like, ‘Oh, they’re dumb, they’re voting for Brexit, they’re voting for Trump.’ I don’t like it, and I don’t like to hear it,” Russell said.
Matthew agreed: “There is a lot [of people] on that illiberal left that absolutely condescend, patronise, and are arrogant towards that other 50%,” he said.
“I’m sure you saw it in our industry when Trump was voted in four years ago,” Matthew continued. “They were in denial that was real. Some of them were in absolute denial.”
And now, the “Lincoln Lawyer” star asserted, the left shouldn’t expect Trump voters to accept President-elect Joe Biden’s victory.
“Looks like Biden’s our guy,” Matthew said. “Now you’ve got the right that’s in denial, ’cause their side has fake news. And I understand. They’ve been fed fake news. No one knows who the hell to believe, right? So they’re putting down their last bastion of defence.”
Matthew, a native Texan who recently shot down reports he was pondering a run for governor, doesn’t seem to have disclosed his party affiliation of late. But he insisted a science-backed centrist approach could help heal the rift.
“I wanna say I’ll meet you in the middle,” he told Russell. “I actually think that it’s more of a dare than it’s ever been. ... Let’s get aggressively centrist.” He said reframing it as a dare could appeal to the right.
Matthew cited get-out-the-vote efforts as an example of ineffective politics. He said many vote campaigns are backed by Democrats and alienate half of the electorate.
“The left is gonna have to understand the science of the values of meet you in the middle,” he said. “... I believe there is science to it.”