Chris Matthews says Biden has 'good reason to be resentful' of Obama, elites

MSNBC's Chris Matthews said President Biden was right about ignoring "the elite" on Thursday, adding he had "good reason to be resentful" of former President Obama because of how he's been treated.

Matthews sang Biden's praises on "Morning Joe" Thursday, recounting his first upset U.S. Senate victory in Delaware in 1972 and overcoming personal tragedy after the deaths of his wife and young daughter. He suggested Biden had little reason to care what figures like Hollywood actor George Clooney thought when they called on him to get out of the 2024 race.

"He found Jill [Biden]," Matthews said. "Now who's he going to listen to? Jill or George Clooney? I'm telling you, it's personal. It's so true about the elite, he is absolutely right about the elite. Look at President Obama, he served for eight years loyally, and yet Obama backed Hillary Clinton for president and didn't back him. I hear he never even invited him upstairs. He had a good reason to be resentful, but he isn't. He puts up with it, with the elite."

On Monday, Biden called into "Morning Joe" and railed against "the elites" trying to force him out of the race, referring to outlets like the New York Times and prominent figures like ex-Obama adviser David Axelrod.

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Chris Matthews (MSNBC)

Matthews said Thursday that Biden was shaping up to be a "comeback" candidate.

"I'm telling you, people are going to end up rooting for him in October, because he will have a comeback and in this elite-fashioned attack on him, they are going to pay for it, but in the end they are going to end up voting for him," he continued. "I think Biden will be the little guy, he will be the Democrat in this race, the true Democrat, and he is going to get people to turn for him in October. It's going to be stunning. He is not quitting, he is not built to quit."

While Matthews said Biden wasn't "resentful," the show's host felt differently.

Earlier in the show, "Morning Joe" co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski pointed to Obama’s "influence" and suggested the former president was behind actor Clooney’s New York Times guest essay this week calling for Biden to abandon his re-election bid.

"I will say, one thing we do have to underline here, just so viewers can follow, what’s going on behind the scenes is the Biden campaign and many Democratic officials do believe that Barack Obama is quietly working behind the scenes to orchestrate this," Scarborough said. "If Joe Biden believes that, that’s not going to get him out of the race any faster."

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Scarborough argued that any time Axelrod or former Obama aides and hosts of Pod Save America criticize Biden, it "ensures that Joe Biden will dig himself in another day." 

MSNBC's Joe Scarborough  (John Lamparski/Getty Images)

"The pathway to Joe Biden graciously stepping aside does not go through the Obamas or the Clintons. It just doesn’t," he said, adding, "This is the reality. Joe Biden is deeply resentful of his treatment under not only the Obama staff but also the way he was pushed aside for Hillary Clinton." 

"He’s deeply resentful of those trying to shove him out of the way," Scarborough added. "He’s always felt like an outsider, always felt like people have looked down upon him."

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A representative for Obama's office didn't return a request for comment to Fox News Digital. The Biden campaign also didn't return a request for comment about Scarborough's remarks.