In reference to Schiavo case, Limbaugh ridiculed liberals and environmentalists for helping beached whales, dolphins

Nationally syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh claimed that whales and dolphins beach themselves because they "don't want to live" and referred to the Terri Schiavo case by stating that liberals and environmentalists "keep them [beached animals] alive" by giving them "ice chips to make sure they don't get dehydrated."

From the March 24 edition of the Rush Limbaugh Show:

LIMBAUGH: I'm sure before the day is over some whales somewhere or some dolphins somewhere will beach themselves wanting to die, that's why they beach themselves, and the liberals will just march out everywhere, the environmentalists, and try to send these dolphins, even though they're telling us they don't want to live, that's why they beach themselves, they'll be down there, they'll be throwing them back in the water. They'll keep them alive, put them in various places -- ice chips to make sure they don't get dehydrated and so forth, because of course that could lead to terrible problems for the dolphins and the whales. Somewhere this will happen today or this week, and of course we will mount all of our worldly efforts to save these beached beasts, stop their euphoria and so forth and try to feed them so that they can stay alive. We'll get ice chips and do whatever we can to keep these beached whales hydrated.

[...]

So, life goes on in America, and around the world, in the oceans and in the forests, as you see. In Florida, it's a different story.

Posted to the web on Friday, March 25, 2005 at 12:19 PM ET