Limbaugher Cheesed

Do we know he was piqued? When I heard about that, I assumed he was speaking with amused, dismissive contempt, for Limbaugh and for the lowest common denominator GOOPers who are pandering to the dittohead base. Limbaugh and the politics of that kind of pettiness, like proposing Alcatraz as the new Gitmo, are the childish things Obama called on us–and them–to set aside.
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Along those lines, after the election we heard, for the fourth or fifth post-election period in a row, that now the non-crazy Republicans, the alleged grown ups, were going to take control of the party. Any evidence that this is happening? Has anyone checked to see if Richard Lugar and Olympia Snowe are aware of… well…. anything?

He’s forcing Republicans to make a public choice between the divisive politics of the base and the new era of bi-partisanship, or at least the era of attempted bi-partisanship. I don’t think it’s a bad tactic…they’ll be the ones who broke the truce. Of course it doesn’t help that you and your colleagues continue to accept right wing talking points as fact while doing zero due diligence. Talk to Pete Hoekstra lately?

I’m not so sure, Joe. Like it or not, these clowns do take most of their cues from Rush. Given that, how can you discuss Republican “idea” without mentioning Rush?

“I was disappointed that President Obama even acknowledged the existence of Rush Limbaugh in his meeting with Congressional leaders on Friday”
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Joe-I was not disappointed he acknowledged Rush in the way he did. Rush and all these people can not be just ignored like they don’t exist because they have millions of listeners. Someone with just a big a of soap box has to tell those same listeners of Rush and Hannity that he and his co-horts are simply wrong. The press isn’t going to do it. The media which should be pushing back on this kind of hate and fear just love Rush and Drudge to death.

I disagree. There is a tight core of the GOP that loves the likes of Rush and Coulter. If it comes to it they will listen to them over an old school radio with the antennae duck taped into place. There are those for whom hate is like jello, there is always room for more.
All Obama has done is feed the beast.

I am confused. Didn’t Howie Kurtz say Limbaugh is part of the “conservative mainstream?”

There is a tight core of the GOP that loves the likes of Rush and Coulter.

I believe the technical term is “Republican congressional leadership”.
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Since that was the very group to which Barack Obama was talking, he needed to note the man who rules their world. (Speaking of that phrase, it appears that Mark Halperin still has a job at TIME magazine; it looks like there are still fans of that kind of Drudge sludge.)

Moreover Joe sound as if Obama has no political skills. If he used this opportunity to portray the GOP’s latest tactics as the childish rantings of Limbaugh and his ilk then I have to figure he knows what he is doing. During the campaign you and your ilk constantly tried to tell him how to respond in given situations and if 2008 will be known for anything it will be known for the year all of the pundits got it wrong all of the time.

Bennet only says that stuff for mainstream media consumption (and you fell for it). The GOP has always had two separate message streams, one for the base and one for the “reasonable” people.
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And here’s what Bennet actually said: “Of course if you’re talking about policies with which you disagree, you don’t want them to succeed. The locution ‘I want him to fail’ is not what you say the first week. [..] The rhetoric could be improved.” Yeah, that’s some repudiation.
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And why should Obama help the GOP to cover up their own “embarrassing anachronisms”?

While sane people see Limbaugh as the crazy whacked out cancer that he is, Congressional Republicans bow to him. So Obama can’t quite bend to reality there.

[Limbaugh] has become an embarrassing anachronism, like a comedian still doing Dukakis jokes. His brand of entertainment went out with the crash; his ditto-heads are losing their jobs. His crapulous invective only has the power to stigmatize his allies now.
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I thought the GOP was purging all the heretics who dare deviate from the books of Limbaugh and Coulter. I thought they were regrouping into an ever-more conservative organization.
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I definitely don’t think Limbaugh is getting sidelined right now.

Joe I’m surprised that as a communicator you aren’t more astute about GOP communication tactics. Of course Limbaugh uses the most outrageous language to promote GOP positions so when the Bennetts or the Kristols use a more reasonable tone to say virtually the same thing you listen and repeat it as if the position is actually reasonable. I admit its effective because the media rarely understands they’ve been duped.

Joe,
This sounds like the same strategy that Kerry used in ’04: Ignore the swift boat liars and they will just naturally fade away.
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In the same way that Obama responded to smears and lies immediately during the campaign, he should continue to debunk them promptly now. People like Limbaugh have a disproportionately loud voice; we ignore their lies at our peril.

Let’s recall what William Bennett was writing about in October: A quick few examples: pimping the “troubling” (read: “Arab-named”) Rashid Khalidi “connection” with Obama; accusing Obama of “class warfare”; quoting the likes of Karl Rove, Dick Morris, and Mark Steyn Obama, and Fred Barnes defending Palin.
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Of course, he didn’t expect anyone to ever read this stuff or try to hold him to account at any point in the future; he was just saying whatever he calculated might help the GOP that instant. (Gee, I wonder if he still thinks that the election was a “referendum on Obama”?).
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William Bennett is Rush Limbaugh, only slightly less blustery and slim.
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And reality-based commentators should be tying Rush Limbaugh around the necks of the GOP every day. Recall that George Bush Jr. and Sr. called him up to wish him well just a few months ago. Rush Limbaugh is today’s GOP.
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There are no sane Republicans.

“about as controversial as Norway”.
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Hehe, is that the new metaphor in Washington? On behalf of all norwegians, I’m not sure whether to take it as a compliment or insult… But, I will say this: Norway has no equivalent to Rush Limbaugh. Thank God.

What’s funny is that Limbaugh seems to be doing his usual show, but his listeners’ ardor has been amped way up. It’s kinda funny/sad watching them get more and more out of touch.

It may not be uniting, but Obama seems to be marginalizing the crazies away from the moderates.

That being said, baiting Rush’s listeners into (further) stupid yawping doesn’t seem his style. This tempest in a teapot was probably inadvertent, resulting either from pique or from trying to speak the Republicans’ language.

I disagree with both Joe and most of the comments. Rush is Rush. He is entertainment. I laugh that people connect him with so called conservatism (what the hell is that now, anyway) or the disintegrating Reupubs. He is to political commentary what professional wrestling is to sports. Even I listen sometimes for a good laugh. As I do the pope and other religious crazies.
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I think Obama had no great movtives in mentioning the jerk, other than to point to what he and his dittoheads are. Nothing significant beyond pure entertainment value. Long live fat Rush.

The first step towards turning people into Obama herd of sheep is maligning opposing point of views using various “inaccurate” adjectives.

Way to go, apparently getting things doing is fllowing the order of Mr.Godama

“He should save it for opponents who remain relevant.”
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I think that it is you who is confused. Limbaugh is still relevant because he’s promulgating the same (lying) talking points that are the mainstream Republican position which are, in turn, parroted by your colleagues in the corporate press. They’ve been legitimizing, if not lionizing him, since Ronald Reagan was president. I appreciate your public disdain of Limbaugh but stop blaming Democrats for what the corporate press and other “conservatives” have wrought.

I do get the impression Limbaugh leads, not follows. I often see a striking increase in message discipline after Rush comes on the air at noon EST on those days Rush deigns to appear on the air.

I have long believed that our Big Media and other Villagers were afraid of Limbaugh. This is an important step for Joe. Calling Limbaugh irrelevant is about the worst insult Joe could possibly hurl at him. If only it were true…

“I do get the impression Limbaugh leads, not follows.”
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It’s such a circle jerk from Hertitage, to Kristol, to Limbaugh, to Reynolds to Boehner, it’s hard to say who “leads”. However, during the last desperate weeks of the McCain Campaign, their rhetoric and that of Limbaugh and Hannity became almost indistinguishable from one other (don’t ask me how I know this). The good news: it failed spectacularly. I blame the intertubes.

What a phucking idiotic post this is by the appropriately named Joke Line. President Obama knew EXACTLY what he was doing because he knew just like kindergarteners the GOP would run to the nearest journalist and recount what he said. But the problem for them is its going to blow up in their face. Rush Limbaugh’s audience isn’t nearly as big as it used to be and for the people squarely in the middle this is going to once again expose the GOP for the assclowns that they are. Notice none of these dumb asses have come out and said they AREN’T taking their cues from Limbaugh. And guess what we have been hearing about all day in addition to President Obama’s words? The clip of Limbaugh telling the world he hopes Obama fails. Just as the situation made Bill Bennett who is just as big a wingnut as Limbaugh repudiate him, for the next three days or so you will see Republican/Conservative after Republican/Conservative on the talking head shows having to walk back Limbaughs words all in front of millions of middle of the road Americans who are are going to be appalled that the GOP was once again playing politics with their lively hood. For years behind the scenes Democrats have been saying the Republican party was taking its cues from the Limbaugh/Hannity crowd but nobody stepped up to the plate and put them on blast so average people thought it wasn’t true. Now they will know better. And the best part won’t be the clowns like Bennett who walk it back, it will be the “conservative thinkers” who back Rush up. THATS whats going to hurt the Republicans the most.
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President Obama said what plenty of people have wanted to say but didn’t have the clout. As I type Chris Matthews just made another Republican walk it back on Rush

“I do listen to Rush. I listen to it from a radio in my office, or depending on my day, if I’m in the car, I will listen to Rush. And he will tell you I’ve been listening for years. I think it’s my duty to listen to Rush. I think Rush has actually yet to get the credit he is due, because his audience for so many years felt they were in the wilderness of this country. No one was talking to them.”
-Brian Williams

And here’s the WaPo’s Michael Shear’s take. Wow, the MSM love covering this stuff.
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IMHO, Obama’s cool take on Limbaugh is appropriate. I didn’t see any evidence of pique. He seemed dismissive, like a teacher deflating the class clown, but maybe it was too low-key to have an effect. Limbaugh is not just distraction; he fuels and emboldens the opposition.

Mr. Klein…

You were disappointed the President even acknowledged the existance of Rush Limbaugh? Unbelievable sir. Rush is truly the voice of true conservatives across this nation. If you listen to his show, many people call in to thank him for his inspiration. He has been broadcasting for many years and continues to be a source of strength for America. Rush admitted he had a prescription drug problem and didn’t blame society or his parents. Mr. Klein, what if President Bush told Dem leaders not to listen to Chris Mathews? The main stream media would have went nuts. Shame on you Mr. Klein for not respecting Rush Limbaugh…Clearly President Obama understands his relevance.

Scott Lara
Jacksonville, Florida

I rest my case.

Mr. Klein…

You were disappointed the President even acknowledged the existance of Rush Limbaugh? Unbelievable sir. Rush is truly the voice of like 100 people across this nation. If you listen to his show, maybe 4 people call in to thank him for his inspiration. He has been broadcasting for many years and continues to be a source of strength for crazy people. Rush admitted he had a prescription drug problem and still wants everyone except him to go to jail for it. Mr. Klein, what if President Bush told Dem leaders not to listen to jabbering idiots? The main stream media would have discussed Bush’s Linconian manner. Shame on you Mr. Klein for not respecting Rush Limbaugh…Clearly President Obama understands his relevance to me.

Sarcastr0
Crazytown, Florida.

“I think Rush has actually yet to get the credit he is due, because his audience for so many years felt they were in the wilderness of this country. No one was talking to them.”
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Awwwww. Now they have a drug addicted, morally degenerate, millionaire liar to infect them with right-wing political propaganda designed to benefit other morally degenerate, millionaire liars. I say we give Rush the credit he is due. Double that for Williams.

I think it’s absurd and disingenuous to dismiss Rush and his relevance, as well as danger.

Isn’t Rush the same guy who not only gets lauds from Brian Williams and Charles Gibson, but was given more than a few direct policy meetings with Bush? All you have to do is look at many a conservative commentator these days, and see an incestuous system of validation, whether it’s Rush validating random conservi-schmoe #5, or Hannity validating Rush, or etc. No matter how many people might try and pawn his crazier moments as ‘jokes’ or ‘sarcasm’ or ‘satire’, he consistently shows that more often than not, he means the craziest crap he spews, and so do many of the great ‘luminaries’ on the conservative spectrum of US Politics. Obama, for his part, is trying to force people to make a decision: own up to Rush, for all his insanity, or cut him off, rather than try and have it both ways.

Let’s see – a millionaire tells his blue collar followers that he hopes the country continues to tank and his viewers lose their jobs because the President’s mode of rescue contradicts his economic principles. And people are still following him?

It was deft suggestion by Obama, not so much about ideology but about the seriousness one needs to lead the country. Rush isn’t. Nor does he lead.

shep: Limbaugh is still relevant because he’s promulgating the same (lying) talking points that are the mainstream Republican position which are, in turn, parroted by your colleagues in the corporate press. They’ve been legitimizing, if not lionizing him, since Ronald Reagan was president.
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Yep. Limbaugh is welcome as an honored guest on just about any teevee talk or news show around. While waiting for Obama to come out for his first press conference as President-Elect, the very serious one to set the tone on the economy, CNN talked to Limbaugh to get his take on it. And who can forget Katie Couric giving Michael J. Fox a hard time over the things Limbaugh said about Fox “faking” his symptoms. Until this changes, until he is treated in the media like the rabble rousing blowhard he is, it is essential for decent people to call him out.
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Joe, you are utterly wrong about this. Good for President Obama (I so like typing that) for minimizing the man.

slara1961 wrote: ‘Rush admitted he had a prescription drug problem and didn’t blame society or his parents.’
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That’s true. He didn’t blame society or his parents. Mister ‘talent on loan from god’ blamed his maid.
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BTW – What kind of person sends his maid out to do his illegal drug buys for him, anyway? Maybe the same kind that takes Viagra with him when he and his male buddies head off for a third world country sex tour (in Costa Rica)?

It seems Joe, that you’ve just helped Rush get more “oxy*”, yourself.
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What needs to remembered is this:
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Like Pravda in the days of the Soviet Union, FOX and Rush are propagandists, and neither he nor FOX brooks any dissent in their views. This is important, as both, as media entities, stumble about like those people who suffer the defect of having no pain receptors.
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Like them, you’ll find them putting their hands on hot isles, and not realizing they’ve gone and “done it” until after they see the smoke. If you doubt this, just recall Rush’s numerous other scrapes with controversy.
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What has changed?
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These people no longer have a pipeline into the White House nor the bullhorn available from the same source for broadcasting their own defence more loudly than detractors. Therefore, now, even though Rush’s “defense” is typical, it is now drowned out by his detractors, who have suddenly found a much louder voice.
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Don’t believe it? Just wait until we get to hear from Coombes about the goings on at FOX, behind the scenes, in the years he was Hannity’s “fall guy”. Now that will be real “fly on the wall” testimony.
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*oxycontin or oxygen, whatever…

Rush is truly the voice of true conservatives across this nation. If you listen to his show, many people call in to thank him for his inspiration. He has been broadcasting for many years and continues to be a source of strength for America.
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See? Hard evidence that the fattest, most disgusting f–k of all still retains Grand Poobah status in the right wing.

This point by atrios seems relevant: I’m always amazed at how mainstream journalists never acknowledge that anything they do could possibly have an impact on anything.

I say bravo, BHO. Shine a light on the cockroaches and watch them scatter.

[...] El Rushbo’s bad taste is being excoriated by the smarter conservative commenters like William Bennett, which is appropriate because Limbaugh is their problem: he has become an embarrassing anachronism, like a comedian still doing Dukakis jokes. His brand of entertainment went out with the crash; his ditto-heads are losing their jobs. His crapulous invective only has the power to stigmatize his allies now. So why give him oxygen? This is that rarest of moments: Obama showing a smidgeon of public pique. He should save it for opponents who remain relevant. ~swampland.blogs.time.com [...]

When not in a drug addled stupor or violating impoverished girls in third world countries, Rush Limbaugh spends his time sodomizing barnyard animals.
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Note: My comments about Limbaugh are ‘comedy’ and are therefore rendered immune from any criticism or fact checking.

“Like Pravda in the days of the Soviet Union, FOX and Rush are propagandists…”
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What about that, Joe? Do you consider Limbaugh’s “crapulous invective” akin to political propaganda? Have you noticed that Republicans in all quarters (and many of your peers in the media) can be heard repeating much of it as if it were relevant and true? Why would they all say exactly the same dishonest things if they weren’t political propaganda?
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And what prevents you from admitting any of this?

Who is Rush Limbaugh? Is he German? Was he born in the USA? Sounds like a nazi name.

The republicans are stuck with Rush and his followers. Rush spews his brand of political bigotry and nonsense because that is what his audience wants. They want and need someone to echo the positions that they have. I live in Ohio and Rush is very popular. Ohio might be the buckle on the Bible Belt but Rush is the undone zipper on the pants. He isn’t viewed as entertainment, he is regarded as one of the few sources of how things really are. Hannity, Savage, Coulter and Rush have large followings because they do represent the attitudes and opinions of millions of conservatives. With the republicans getting their clocks cleaned in the last two elections and losing in most demographics, they can’t afford to alienate a large chunk of their base. Make no mistake, self righteous bigots are one of their few loyal base elements. I had told myself for years that people didn’t really take them seriously. I was wrong. They are taken seriously by more people than I care to admit. Republicans are headed for third party status behind Independents if they can’t broaden their base, but in order to broaden their base they’d have to rein in the Limbaugh crowd and the more fanatical elements of the evangelicals. I can’t see how they can do it without significantly hurting their near term prospects. I don’t think they can see a way to do it either.

Rush Limbaugh is a druggie. Once a druggie, always a druggie.

Joe, you lined up all the dots but didn’t quite connect them.
You answered your own question “So why give him oxygen?” in the previous line: “His crapulous invective only has the power to stigmatize his allies”.

Obama wasn’t piqued, he was strategically pressing the advantage – and with impeccable timing: at the peak of his own honeymoon he’s using Limbaugher-buyers’ remorse to put the conservatives on the spot – embarassing them into playing nice (or else, in essence, admitting to being haters and morons ripe to be voted out of office).

Crazy like a fox, that Obama is. I can hardly wait till he’s done consolidating DC and turns his attention to places like Palestine, Iran, Korea, China..
the Force is strong with this one.

[...] – Rush Limbaugh vindt het natuurlijk heerlijk dat Obama over hem praat. Een enkeling denkt: waarom praat Obama eigenlijk over hem? [...]

It is time for America to be honest. Most of us do not like or listen to Rush Limbaugh. It is destructive and encourages division in America. The time has come to call our local Rush AM radio station and tell them “You do not listen to Rush Limbaugh”. Ask them to please air a locally produced radio show to replace Rush. Please ask them to Cancel the Rush Limbaugh radio show.

If you do this then you do something for America.

Republicans are headed for third party status behind Independents if they can’t broaden their base, but in order to broaden their base they’d have to rein in the Limbaugh crowd and the more fanatical elements of the evangelicals.
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I’m going to beat my own drum and say that I figured this out back during the GOP primaries. I realized that they’re trying to straddle the divide between the absolute batsh!t f@cking loonies and the rest of the country, and the instant they move towards one side they lose the other.

Joe, I often find your insights insightful, but as some others have noted, I do think you’re off the mark this time out. I am among what I hope is the VAST majority of people who dislike Limbaugh a great big old bunch, but that doesn’t make him irrelevant nor was, IMHO, President Obama showing pique with his comment. Further, as others have already observed, I believe the President was very clever with his [apparent] tone, word choice, and length of comment. Perhaps put another way, what he said might be recast along these lines: “If all you do is listen to Rush, you can never get anything done. And I’ve got a job to do.”

[...] Joe Klein, TIME: “I was disappointed that President Obama even acknowledged the existence of Rush Limbaugh … ” [...]

Joe, Rush is so irrelevant that you took your precious time and space to post about him. I am amused at the dismissive manner of you, as well as (so it would seem by the above comments) most of your readers, of Limbaugh and we 20 million who listen to him. If all you hear is from the liberal echo chamber you might falsely conclude that his views are on the extreme periphery of American thought. That is to engage in a fallacy of group soliloquy. Because you and your fellow travelers think a certain way, it means that everyone who matters thinks the same way. I am among the 20 million Limbaugh listeners and 100 million other Americans who don’t. It would be a great exercise in fair and balanced journalism for you to actually listen to what Limbaugh says, rather than comment on what you hear others say he said.

What happened to the post pointing out that Gable was originally spelled incorrectly? Just curious.

New to this site. For some reason, I can’t get the original full version of this article that I saw 1/2 hour ago; was it revised and shortened? or am I just stupid and unable to access the full version? For example, several posts refer or quote lines from the article I can’t find in the (shortened) 2 paragraphs above. Help!

Put me down as a DITTO Mr. Klein. Limbaugh is well past a caricature of himself and he knows it. He must be laughing in his single malt about this free publicity and notariety. Leader of the Republican Party?? A credible voice on policy and economics? We don’t even know if Rush can balance a checkbook for crissakes. Leave Rush to continue to preach to his choir and his true believers are best left to their favortie corner of the social gulag. I mean, he’s a TALK SHOW HOST….

“You can cover a Turd with, Honey, Sugar & Almond Paste, call it “Almond Rocha”. But no matter how you slice it, it is still, SHIIIIIIIIIIT. Rush, you go Boy, Obama, Leftist, baby killing uppitty Negro. Bite me.

Many of you attempt to discredit the conservative base by spinning liberal rhetoric and talking down about conservative views. I would hope that those of you that recieved your education via google or some other urban think tank will take my words seriously. You can praise your president for all he does (or doesn’t) do to our country, however conservatives hold most of the wealth and resources in this country and if you all think for a single minute that we are going to allow you liberal urban elitists to take away what we have aquired, through government intervention or ridiculous policy you are sorely misinformed. Your idealogy is flawed and each of you that thinks that your government is somehow responsible for your standard of living must, at some point in your life, come to terms with the fact that you are dependent on a system that is supported by the people that you believe are your ememies. In the end you will have no food, no electricity, no way of self-sufficiency if you continue to spew your narrow-minded ways.

We all have to give Rush his credit! He has successfully created a job for himself when no one else would dare hire him. His diatribe has endeared him to his dedicated listeners who have actually bought into his attempt to paint himself as a staunch conservative by supporting his advertisers. Rush understands media marketing very well and knows full well that he has to maintain his extreme position in order to maintain his ratings. Nothing else matters to him and if his ratings start to tank, he will modify his position to a point that will allow him to maintain his ratings.

Every time some one in a position of authority uses his name or references his show, they are doing nothing more than giving him free advertising and increasing the number of listeners who his advertisers hope to sell their products.

I used to listen to Rush’s Show until I realized that his only purpose was to stir up the emotions of his listeners with his opposition to whatever the topic of the day was and could care less if anyone disagreed with him. He is an attack dog of sorts that relishes the limelight and offers few, if any, real solutions to any talking point. The description of talk show host doesn’t fit him well either. Maybe pot stirrer would be a better description.