Liberal MSNBC host Mika Brzezinski had sharp words Monday for Democrats during an interview with their potential new party chair, saying they were a team of all talk and no results.
Rep. Keith Ellison (D., Minn.), one of the most left-wing members of Congress, put his name forward this month to be the new chair of the Democratic National Committee after a tumultuous year for the party culminating in a disastrous election.
During an interview on Morning Joe, Ellison proclaimed "turnout" to be the party's main problem and one he could properly address. An example, he said, of poor turnout was in Flint, Michigan, the city whose water crisis captured national attention earlier this year.
"Flint didn't even turn out very well. Flint!" Ellison said. "They're still using bottled water, Mika. This is an outrage."
"That's an example of where the Democratic Party is, where they're all talk, no real message and no real results," Brzezinski said. "That's exactly what the Flint story is."
Brzezinski added that she made the same remark consistently about Hillary Clinton's failed presidential campaign in that it lacked a solid message.
Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) even had a debate in Flint during their primary battle when the city's lead-laden water crisis made headlines, but the Flint issue largely faded out of the national consciousness afterward, in spite of a visit there by President Obama.
Ellison was visibly affronted by Brzezinski's criticism.
"There was a lot of good work Democrats did to try to bring attention to Flint," Ellison said, to which Brzezinski responded, "Absolutely."
Ellison attacked Republican Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder for still "hurting" Flint's residents.
"But you can't go there and take the credit and treat the water and prop people up and walk away," Brzezinski said.
"No, you can't do that, but you also need some cooperation on the other side of the table when those guys are in the majority," Ellison said.