The brother of MSNBC personality Chris Matthews said he would be “stunned beyond words” if the “Hardball” host were to run for Senate from Pennsylvania.
“There’s no hint of him running for office,” Jim Matthews, a Republican commissioner in Montgomery County, Pa., told Politicker. “That’s 1,000 percent true.”
“I know there’s been discussion about (a Senate run) … but I would be stunned beyond words if he does anything besides but look forward tomorrow to going to work,” Jim Matthews added. “I just think he’s recharged.”
There had been heated speculation late last year as to whether or not Chris Matthews would challenge Republican incumbent Sen. Arlen Specter as a Democrat in 2010.
Polling had indicated that Matthews would pose a competitive challenge to Specter, though a number of other Democratic politicians in the state had also hoped to wage a race against the long-serving GOP Senator.
Amid the fever pitch of rumors of a Chris Matthews candidacy, there were reports that MSNBC had also sought to renegotiate its contract with the host.
“What you’ll see is an announcement from the network, not by Chris, that he’s re-upped his contract,” Jim Matthews said.