MSNBC host Chris Matthews said Thursday that House Speaker Paul Ryan (R., Wis.) sounded like Luke Skywalker during his first minute on the House floor Wednesday, as highlighted by NewsBusters.
"There is still evil out there. We cannot ignore it. We cannot contain it. We must defeat it. And we must protect our people. The country is uneasy and unsettled," Ryan said in a speech, urging the House to support legislation that would strengthen screening procedures for Syrian refugees.
After the clip played, Matthews was taken aback by Ryan's heroic tone.
"God, that sounds like Luke Skywalker," he said.
NewsBusters noted that Matthews, who has voiced opposition to the legislation that Ryan is seen vouching for, seemed to invoke the Skywalker reference as an insult.
Apparently Matthews thought that the reference "was a great way to mock [Ryan] for his soaring rhetoric on the House floor about defending the country from terrorism," NewsBusters wrote.
Full transcript:
SPEAKER PAUL RYAN: There is still evil out there. We cannot ignore it. We cannot contain it. We must defeat it. And we must protect our people. The country is uneasy and unsettled.
CHRIS MATTHEWS: God, that sounds like Luke Skywalker. Anyway, welcome back to Hardball. That was the Speaker of the House himself, Paul Ryan, voicing his concerns over Syrian refugees coming into the country after the Paris attacks. The House today, by the way, approved legislation that would toughen the scrutiny of Syrian refugees wanting to enter the U.S. 47 Democrats, by the way, voted with the Republicans, to require tougher screening.