“I’m retiring,” Matthews said. “This is the last ‘Hardball’ on MSNBC.”
Matthews was due to retire in the near future with the events of the past week playing a factor in the timing of the move, an MSNBC spokesperson said.
After MSNBC aired a commercial following the announcement, Matthews did not return to the program. Steve Kornacki, a political reporter for the network, took over the rest of the hour, and seemed shocked by the news.
“That was a lot to take in,” he said, saying it had been an honor to work with Matthews, and then beginning a discussion about the coronavirus response
The recent accusation that Matthews made inappropriate comments to a female journalist was not the first time he had faced such allegations. In 2017,
The Daily Caller reported that
MSNBC formally reprimanded Matthews over jokes and comments he made to a female employee in 1999. “For making such comments in the past, I’m sorry,” Matthews said on tonight’s broadcast.
Matthews had recently drawn criticism for comments about Sanders, who is currently the frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination. Matthews apologized after comparing Sanders' win in the Nevada caucuses to the Nazis taking over France in World War II.
Apparently, the Network thought that Sanders is the front runner at the time.