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Limbaugh Goes to Mat With RNC Chair
March 02, 2009 3:30 PM
ABC News' Steven Portnoy reports: The nation’s most listened-to conservative talk radio host, Rush Limbaugh, practically declared war on the newly-elected leader of the Republican National Committee today, following a television interview in which the RNC chair called Limbaugh’s show “incendiary” and “ugly.”
In the interview that aired Saturday, Michael Steele, who became the Republican chairman last month, took umbrage when CNN’s D.L. Hughley suggested that Limbaugh is the “de facto leader of the Republican party.”
“No, he’s not,” Steele said. “I’m the de facto leader of the Republican party.”
Referring to Limbaugh’s statements that the talk show host wants President Obama “to fail,” Steele said, “Let’s put it into context here. Rush Limbaugh is an entertainer. Yes, it’s incendiary. Yes, it’s ugly.”
Limbaugh responded today with an on-air diatribe against the new party chairman that ran nearly 20 minutes, alleging that Steele is more interested in being a “talking head” on television than leading the party to electoral success.
“I hope the RNC chairman realizes he’s not a talking head pundit,” Limbaugh said. “It’s time, Mr. Steele, for you to go behind the scenes and start doing the work that you were elected to do, instead of trying to be some talking head media star, which you’re having a tough time pulling off.”
Limbaugh then accused the RNC chair of being disloyal, after having appeared as a guest on Limbaugh’s show during his failed 2006 run for the Senate in Maryland.
“My parents taught me when I was growing up that you always stood behind people who defended you, that you never abandon people who stood up for you and defended you against assault,” Limbaugh said.
Limbaugh said at the time Steele thanked him for coming to his defense, after Democratic party operatives illegally obtained and leaked elements of Steele’s credit report and Michael J. Fox appeared in campaign ads attacking Steele for his opposition to embryonic stem cell research.
“Something’s happened. Now I’m just ‘an entertainer’ and now I’m ‘ugly’ and my program is ‘incendiary,’” Limbaugh said.
“Why are you running the Republican Party?” Limbaugh openly asked Steele. “Why do you claim you lead the Republican Party, when you seem obsessed with seeing to it that President Obama succeeds? I, frankly, am stunned that the chairman of the Republican National Committee endorses such an agenda. I have to assume that he does because he attacks me for wanting it to fail.”
In a speech to the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington over the weekend, which Limbaugh now refers to as his “first nationally televised address to the nation,” the talk radio giant explained his rationale for not wanting Obama to succeed.
Limbaugh repeated the refrain on the air today.
“I’ll say it again. Yes, I hope President Obama fails,” adding he does not understand why the statement has caused consternation.
“It is not controversial in the least," Limbaugh claimed. "If I do not believe that President Obama has the best interests of this country at heart, why should I hope he succeeds? ... If I don’t believe that Obama’s success equals Americans’ success, why in the world should I agree with it?”
When asked Sunday on “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” whether the “Rush Limbaugh approach” equals the approach of fellow House Republicans, Minority Whip Eric Cantor, R-Va., said “absolutely not.”
“I don't think anyone wants anything to fail right now. We have such challenges. What we need to do is we need to put forth solutions to the problems that real families are facing today," Cantor said.
Limbaugh asked elected Republicans to call into his program today, to explain why they disagree with him.
“You tell me specific agenda items of Barack Obama’s that you want to succeed. I’d like to hear what they are,” Limbaugh said.
March 2, 2009 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (593)
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1st
Posted by: KonAir1 | Mar 2, 2009 3:44:52 PM
Who's RUSHing to get LimpBalls?
Posted by: KonAir1 | Mar 2, 2009 3:46:24 PM
It is easy to gain a audience if you spew hate toward others.
The real challenge is gaining an audience using a message of hope. It is much more work.
Anyone can hate, but you have to work for hope.
Posted by: reason | Mar 2, 2009 3:50:05 PM
Yeah, that's it!! Go get him, Rush !! You bloated pig!!!
REPUBLICANS HATE AMERICA.
LIMBAUGH/PALIN 2012!!!
G.O.P. = R.I.P.
Posted by: R Mutt | Mar 2, 2009 3:50:19 PM
It is easy to gain an audience if you spew hate toward others.
The real challenge is gaining an audience using a message of hope. It is much more work.
Anyone can hate, but you have to work for hope.
Posted by: reason | Mar 2, 2009 3:51:14 PM
When you have Republican wimps supporting socialism, it's time for those so called "Republicans" to go. Make room for real Conservatives, those who will stand up for America and American values, traditions, and the greatness of this country. I no longer give to the RNC because they have forsaken the principles of America. To these "Republicans" I say go rot in the cess pool of your own making. You give us Conservatives a real headache. So leave already.
Posted by: Gary McClure | Mar 2, 2009 3:52:51 PM
Does Rush care that he is almost unilaterally destroying his party ad whatever appeal it still had to "real" Americans?
Posted by: matt | Mar 2, 2009 3:53:40 PM
Not only ugly but fat.
Posted by: doug | Mar 2, 2009 3:53:42 PM
Man, I must have missed the declaration of war or something. Please tell me the GOP is not in lock step with this man. I pray someone has the power to hush him before he says stuff our whole country will regret. The world is listening, and he is the voice right now right or wrong.
Posted by: Bonnie Kimberly | Mar 2, 2009 3:55:06 PM
Rush is the MAN!!!
Posted by: th | Mar 2, 2009 3:55:22 PM
For the survival of GOP and the country as a whole, Limbaugh has to zip up his mouth. He is dividing people at the time we desperately need unity.
He does not understand if the President fails, the country (everybody) fails and hence himself will eventually fail!
Posted by: RST | Mar 2, 2009 3:55:33 PM
Mr. Steele
You cannot just be that stupid to against Rush the Great. You have 24 hours to apologize or else you are out of RNC. Sorry pal, that is how we run things here at RNC. Rush is the chosen one.
Posted by: vp | Mar 2, 2009 3:57:07 PM
This is good news for the Democrats. Comedian Limbaugh has challenged elected GOPers to come out and join him in wishing President Obama to fail. He even lambasted Steele.
If in the next 24 hours several GOP elected officials dont come out to denounce Limbaugh and embrace Steele as the Chair of the RNC, then no one should question what Rahm said on CBS show that Rush Limbaugh is now the intellectual power house of the Republican party....NICE!!!!!
By the way, it seems Limbaugh delusionally believes his approval rating is much higher than Obama's... I am loving Mr. Limbaugh.
Posted by: Roland | Mar 2, 2009 3:58:34 PM
Rush is pretty out there. Pretty angry at what he sees going on. Deny him a platform to speak ? Not me.
I am glad to see that there are others - including some of my fellow democrats who see Obama's spending as a giant betrayal of the promise he held. I'm looking forward to the day we move a reasonable and less 'self' centric democrat than Obama into the whitehouse. Obamas first 100 days ? like a kid in a candy store when the parents arent looking. Rush Angry ? I'm getting there too.
Posted by: Donny Cruce | Mar 2, 2009 4:00:07 PM
I worry there are many who will produce this type of vitriol if he does step down the gentleman named Gary, appears to really have a hate on I can't figure how things got to him so much he has after all had years of his way in America can he not stand a two party system? Would he have been happier with a King than what he got with Bush?
Posted by: Bonnie Kimberly | Mar 2, 2009 4:00:24 PM
Why doesn't Joe the Plumber tell Rush Limbaugh to shut up?
Joe the Plumber is the true leader of the Republicans!!!
Or is it Bobby Jindal?
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL
G.O.P. = R.I.P.
Posted by: R Mutt | Mar 2, 2009 4:00:26 PM
Who cares what a fat, racist, angry drug addict thinks. Rush, what do you know? You're ignorant in all sense of the word. This man has issues like possibly "getting played with by his F....., then telling his m....., who didn't give a hoot. Went to school and got his lunch money taken...always felt inadequate (should) and incompetent, got a break with one of the radio stations that real Americans don't listen to,made millions, still wasn't happy and tried to drowned his misery with drugs and alcohol, and used that platform to vent his self-hatred. This drew out all the other SELF-HATERS. Ha, Ha, Ha.
Posted by: sngeorgia | Mar 2, 2009 4:01:25 PM
The only shocking thing I've learned from Limbaugh's diatribe is that he had parents, I always assume he crawled from under his rock alone.
Posted by: JR | Mar 2, 2009 4:01:56 PM
His head is bigger than his a..ss.
Posted by: jem | Mar 2, 2009 4:06:08 PM
Limbaugh is the grand poster boy for the GOP! Well done fatso. Keep imploding your party, pig head. I'm finally becoming a Rush fan, but I will never listen to his show, watch him on T.V., or read any opinion piece of his. The fact that the party of hate is turning on each other is wonderful. It's not just edgy, it's nasty and vicious. What they do to everyone else, they are now doing to each other. You see, their hatred for "reasonable" Americans is so obvious now. How could anyone ever vote for their sewage and filth?
Posted by: Demsrgreat | Mar 2, 2009 4:06:31 PM
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