Limbaugh and the GOP

Rush is a great American

Republican chief Michael Steele apologizes for Rush Limbaugh remarks

WASHINGTON -- Two days after calling conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh a mere "entertainer" with an "incendiary" talk show, Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele apologized and acknowledged him as a "national conservative leader."

"To the extent that my remarks helped the Democrats in Washington to take the focus, even for one minute, off of their irresponsible expansion of government, I truly apologize," Steele said late Monday.

Steele's statement capped a remarkable weekend of awkward sparring between Republican officials and Limbaugh, who has repeatedly voiced his desire that President Barack Obama's economic policies fail.

The back and forth reached a fever pitch Monday afternoon when Limbaugh roared back in response to a Steele interview with CNN's D.L. Hughley Saturday night. In that interview, Steele rejected assertions that Limbaugh was the "de facto" leader of the Republican Party. "Rush Limbaugh, his whole thing is entertainment," Steele said then. "Yes, it's incendiary. Yes, it's ugly."

Limbaugh used his Monday talk show to unleash on Steele.

"Why are you running the Republican Party?" Limbaugh asked on his radio show. "Why do you claim you lead the Republican Party when you seem obsessed with seeing to it that President Obama succeeds? ... I would be embarrassed to say that I'm in charge of the Republican Party in the sad-sack state that it's in. If I were chairman of the Republican Party, given the state that it's in, I would quit."

The infighting between a top party official and a conservative opinion leader who claims to have an audience of 20 million developed into a distracting episode for a party struggling to compete with a popular president and find its voice as the opposition party.

"I respect Rush Limbaugh, he is a national conservative leader, and in no way do I want to diminish his voice," Steele said in a statement late Monday. "I'm sure that he and I will agree most of the time, but will probably disagree some as well, which is fine.

"The Democrats are doing everything they can to find ways to take people's attention off of their massive 36-billion-dollar-a-day spending spree that Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have embarked on. To the extent that my remarks helped the Democrats in Washington to take the focus, even for one minute, off of their irresponsible expansion of government, I truly apologize."

Democrats, who have been trying to handcuff Republicans to Limbaugh, reacted gleefully to Steele's apology, saying it illustrated Limbaugh's influence over the party.

"Chairman Steele's reversal this evening and his apology to Limbaugh proves the unfortunate point that Limbaugh is the leading force behind the Republican Party, its politics and its obstruction of President Obama's agenda in Washington," Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, said Monday evening.

Over the past several days, the White House and its Democratic allies have launched a concerted effort to draw attention to Limbaugh in a belief that his support exists only among the most die-hard conservatives.

Democrats have used Limbaugh as their foil instead of Republican congressional leaders, recognizing that part of Obama's appeal is his outreach to Republicans, even if it's not intended to bear immediate fruit.

On Sunday, White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said: "It's our desire that the Republicans would work with us and try to be constructive, rather than adopt the philosophy of somebody like Rush Limbaugh, who is praying for failure." It was a theme that Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs reiterated during his press briefing Monday.

This weekend, a labor-liberal coalition began airing about $100,000 in ads on national cable television and in Washington markets in an effort to tie the Republican Party to Limbaugh, whose provocations don't always follow party script.

"Rush Limbaugh is the leader of the Republican Party -- he says jump and they say how high," said Brad Woodhouse, president of Americans United for Change, the liberal advocacy group that is sponsoring the ads with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

Limbaugh has refused to back down. Speaking Saturday to a conservative convention in Washington, he said: "What is so strange about being honest and saying, 'I want Barack Obama to fail if his mission is to restructure and reform this country so that capitalism and individual liberty are not its foundation?' Why would I want that to succeed?"

The words made some Republicans besides Steele flinch. Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia, the No. 2 Republican leader in the House, on Sunday seemed eager to change the subject. "Nobody -- no Republican, no Democrat -- wants this president to fail, nor do they want this country to fail or the economy to fail," he said on ABC television's "This Week."

When Rush Limbaugh speaks... America listens
Fox News and CNN each aired Limbaugh's keynote speech to the CPAC Saturday afternoon. It was the biggest draw all weekend on cable news.
• From 4:46pm-6:20pmET Fox News averaged 511,000 A25-54 demo viewers and 2.22M Total Viewers. The network peaked at 6pm with 602,000/2.73M. FNC also produced an hour Sunday night at 9pmET with speech highlights which drew 454,000/1.66M. It was Sunday's most-watched cable news hour.
 

He is a holds way too much power...he insights hate and division in our country. He is a dangerous liar who obviously gets off on what power he weilds. He is a detriment to the party and represents the fringe of it only. He has robbed many of the truth and the ability to think for themselves. I am surprised that conservatives kowtow to a drug idled idiot like him.

He is an asset. Why doesn't the country listen to him and heed him? Our country is a disaster!

what kind of American wants the President to fail??

a traitor that is what kind.

even at GWBs worst, no thinking man or woman ever wanted him to fail! 

Rush should be driven back under the rock from which he crawled.

GO RUSH!!!!!!  You tell 'em..

Is there a Republican Party?   I haven't seen one since Thompson and Gulianii bowed out of the race.

Nothing rush does can hurt the republican party, it can only help it.

i seem to remember another dynamic rabble rouser that drew tremendous crowds.  much larger than his opponents.  I think his name was Adolf!

In my opinion he is definitely a liability! He is not interested in anyone or anything but himself - lining his pockets and making a name for himself! It is beyond me how a thinking person can take him seriously.