MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid likened the US Christian right to the Taliban

• MSNBC's Joy-Ann Reid was criticized for comparing the US Christian right to the Taliban.
• "A true cautionary tale for the US," tweeted Reid amid reports of the Taliban denying women access to education.
• Conservative hosts have also made hyperbolic claims about liberals amid deepening partisan divides in the US.

MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid on Saturday drew criticism after comparing the US religious right to the Islamic militants of the Taliban.

The host of The Reidout was commenting on reports of the Taliban denying women and girls access to universities and schools after seizing control of the Afghan city of Herat.

"This is the real-life Handmaid's Tale. A true cautionary tale for the US, which has our own far religious right dreaming of a theocracy that would impose a particular brand of Christianity, drive women from the workforce and solely into childbirth, and control all politics," tweeted Reid.

Conservatives were quick to push back against the comparison as hyperbolic.

"THIS is what Joy Reid thinks of conservatives and Republicans. We are JUST LIKE the Taliban. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I don't believe the press is the enemy of the people, but the far too many in the press (including Joy) think we're enemies of the people,"tweeted Curtis Houck, editor of Newsbusters, a site that aims to expose alleged liberal bias in the media.

Republican strategist Matt Whitlock pointed out that Reid had several times in the past compared US conservatives to the repressive religious zealots in Margaret Atwood's dystopian novel The Handmaid's Tale, which has been made into an acclaimed drama series.

Conservative hosts have also made claims about liberals widely denounced as misleading, with Fox News' Tucker Carlson frequently making hyperbolic claims about plots by liberals to erode America from within.

But it's not just Reid who has argued that there are growing anti-democratic views among sections of the Christian right. Some evangelicals formed part of the core of former President Donald Trump's support and gave credence to his bogus election fraud claims and the GOP push for voting restrictions.

Multiple polls have shown a widening partisan divide in the US on issues including gun rights, abortion, and the response to the COVID-19 pandemic.