Despite having previously referred to the actions of Sen. John McCain or his campaign as “erratic” on several occasions in recent weeks, on the October 12 edition of his NBC-syndicated television show, Chris Matthews suggested that when Sen. Barack Obama used the word to describe McCain, he was making a reference to McCain's age. Matthews asserted, “Obama and [Sen.] Joe Biden have been making their own suggestions about McCain's age and stability.” Matthews then aired a clip of Obama saying, “I don't think we can afford that kind of erratic and uncertain leadership in these uncertain times,” and one of Biden saying, “Not an angry man lurching from one position to another.” Matthews then asked Washington Post columnist David Ignatius, " 'Erratic'; 'lurching from one position' -- are they going after the guy, 'He's an old crank.' What are they trying to make him into?"

However, in recent weeks, Matthews himself has repeatedly described McCain's actions, and those of his campaign, as “erratic”:

• On the October 6 edition of MSNBC's Hardball, Matthews asserted that the “almost Zen calmness” of Obama “seems to be helping him, compared to the erratic-seeming McCain.” Later in the show, Matthews asserted that the “pattern of attack by the McCain forces” was a “pattern of erratic effort to try to change the subject no matter what it might be to.”

• On the September 26 edition of MSNBC's Countdown, Matthews asserted: “I think this other problem with McCain is the Captain Queeg factor here, which is starting to emerge. It's not there yet, but the erratic nature of calling for the firing of the chairman of the SEC, attempting to fire these debates in a sense, this effort to constantly change things ... I mean, he's always trying to rip up the score card."

• As Media Matters for America documented, on the September 26 edition of Hardball, Matthews asserted: “Everybody seems to agree, the conventional wisdom is John McCain's too hot, maybe erratic this week -- I'm not going to come; I'm going to come. I'm going to fire this guy; I'm going to fire that guy. I'm going to fire the debates.” Later in the broadcast, Matthews said, “It seems to me that John McCain's behavior the last week has been erratic -- I mean objectively, not psychologically.”

From the October 6 edition of MSNBC's Hardball with Chris Matthews:

MATTHEWS: One thing I noticed about Obama -- and it sometimes drives me crazy, Peggy --

PEGGY NOONAN (Wall Street Journal columnist): Yeah?

MATTHEWS: -- is that he seems very calm. And I keep wanting him to be more like me or more like [CNBC host Jim] Cramer. We're just -- we're very much alike.

NOONAN: Responsive. Energetic.

MATTHEWS: And yet that almost Zen calmness of him -- in our -- Perry Como calmness of his --

NOONAN: Yeah.

MATTHEWS: -- seems to be helping him, compared to the erratic-seeming McCain.

NOONAN: Yeah.

MATTHEWS: Is that tenor important, or is it -- at some point, do you have to show some passion?

[...]

MATTHEWS: Well, it seems to me, Tom DeFrank, that if you look at the pattern of attack by the McCain forces -- as you say, they have to change the subject -- first of all, it was kind of odd things like Barack's no good; he's a celebrity. Then it was Barack's no good, 'lipstick on a pig' is a bad phrase to use. And now, it's Barack's no good because he hung out in the Chicago politics, Democratic politics, with a guy named Bill Ayers back when. It seems like there is a pattern of erratic effort to try to change the subject no matter what it might be to.

DeFRANK: Well, I don't know whether that's a prima facie evidence of erratic behavior by the McCain camp, but I do think it suggests that they don't have an overall strategy. It's basically tactical responses to the problem of the day. And the problem of the day today and for the last two or three weeks has been the economy.

From the September 26 edition of MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann:

MATTHEWS: I think this other problem with McCain is the Captain Queeg factor here, which is starting to emerge. It's not there yet, but the erratic nature of calling for the firing of the chairman of the SEC, attempting to fire these debates in a sense, this effort to constantly change things -- he did it in Memphis a couple of years ago when he went down there and he knew he was going to lose the straw vote at that Memphis meeting of Southern Republicans and he endorsed Bush so that there wouldn't be a vote. I mean, he's always trying to rip up the score card.

From the September 26 edition of Hardball:

MATTHEWS: Let's go right now to Newsweek's Howard Fineman. You know, that is the issue. Everybody seems to agree, the conventional wisdom is John McCain's too hot, maybe erratic this week -- I'm not going to come; I'm going to come. I'm going to fire this guy; I'm going to fire that guy. I'm going to fire the debates. And on the other hand, you got -- this guy is so cool, you wonder if he's really engaged. Is that the -- is that the sort of the instinct out there?

[...]

MATTHEWS: Welcome back to Hardball, live from the first presidential debate locale down here at Ole Miss, Oxford, Mississippi. First time I've ever been here. Of course, it's always been in the news.

And with us right now is Newsweek's Howard Fineman, who sits with me, as he has often done over the last 300 years, and NBC News political director Chuck Todd.

Chuck, you're right outside the debate center. It seems to me that John McCain's behavior the last week has been erratic -- I mean objectively, not psychologically. He said he would not come here unless action was taken to avert a federal financial collapse. Action has most clearly not been taken. Why is he here?

From the October 12 edition of the NBC-syndicated The Chris Matthews Show:

MATTHEWS: Welcome back. With only three weeks left, both sides are operating on two levels. There's the top-lying message on policies, and then there's the subtext, that emotional message they're sending about the other guy. Just listen to John McCain and Sarah Palin on the trail this week suggesting that Obama's not like us.

McCAIN [video clip]: In short, who is the real Barack Obama?

PALIN [video clip]: Our opponent is someone who sees America as imperfect enough to pal around with terrorists.

MATTHEWS: But Obama and Joe Biden have been making their own suggestions about McCain's age and stability.

OBAMA [video clip]: I don't think we can afford that kind of erratic and uncertain leadership in these uncertain times.

BIDEN [video clip]: Not an angry man lurching from one position to another.

MATTHEWS: “Erratic”; “lurching from one position” -- are they going after the guy, “He's an old crank.” What are they trying to make him into?

IGNATIUS: You know, it's code. I mean, these are not subtle messages, I think.

MATTHEWS: I -- wait. Now, code is pretty dramatic.

IGNATIUS: These are -- you know -- we're getting to the bullhorn stage on the Republican side. I have to say that this scares me a little bit. The country's really frightened. The country's looking for people to blame, and as this rhetoric cranks up -- you know, the reporters out on the trail this week said that -- what they're really struck by was how angry people were. There's this rage that's out there, and I think both sides -- but especially the Republicans, to be honest -- are playing with fire. When you begin talking about Barack Obama and terrorists, you know, you're going to strike a match to something that's really explosive.