This hour of the Limbaugh Wire brought to you by "childish" Obama plan to "destroy" the economy
By Simon Maloy

Here at the Limbaugh Wire, we love a good conspiracy theory, which we loosely define as Rush's overly elaborate and fanciful attempts to rationalize or dismiss those aspects of life that don't neatly conform to the idyllic Ayn Rand-Ronald Reagan vision of life as it should be, and which crumble under the slightest scrutiny due to their complete lack of logic and/or factual merit. As you'll recall, we've been down this road many times before: Google teaming up with ACORN and the sun to control your thermostat; President Obama collaborating with the Department of Homeland Security and ACORN (again) to undermine the "tea party" protests; and Obama engineering a massive and unprecedented government takeover of the banking industry (helped by ACORN) with the purpose of reinstating the Fairness Doctrine. Well, Rush's latest dip into the conspiracy well cast the reporting of any good economic news as a grand scheme by the liberal media to prop up Obama's poll numbers. Well, it seems that the conservative Washington Times and -- get this -- congressional Republicans are in on it as well: "With the economy showing signs of recovery, fiscally conservative economists and Republican lawmakers are suggesting that the large unspent portion of the nearly $800 billion stimulus fund should be redirected to slash this year's nearly $2 trillion annual deficit."

Rush got this fine Monday's show going by announcing: "Ladies and gentlemen, there can be no other way to say this now. The gloves have to come off. It's time for people to sober up. The president of the United States, Barack Obama, is destroying the United States economy -- there is no other way to describe this -- systematically destroying it." Rush's evidence for this declaration was the Associated Press -- the same Associated Press that Rush thinks is conspiring to sugarcoat the effects of Obama's economic policies. So we guess we didn't even have to debunk that conspiracy theory -- he did it himself. Anyway, Rush read from the AP article, which reported that "big government spending programs" are not helping to ameliorate the problems in the housing market, but instead "[r]ates for mortgages and U.S. Treasury debt are now marching higher as nervous bond investors fret about a resurgence of inflation." Rush said that anyone with a brain at the outset knew that this would be the result, and that he knows that half the people in the Obama administration knew this as well. Rush then explained that the Democratic Party is oriented toward socialism and big government power, but he's not sure whether they intend to destroy the economy, but the fact is that they are.

Then Rush noted that Obama met with the Cabinet today and, in the words of the AP, promised "to deliver more than 600,000 jobs through his $787 billion stimulus plan this summer, with federal agencies pumping billions into public works projects, schools and summer youth programs." Rush was incredulous, saying that these are going to be terrible, short-term jobs that won't pay well.

Then things got... strange. Rush mentioned "Mikhail Gorbachev," then the "Imperial March" from Star Wars started up as Rush explained what a, ahem, "Gorbasm" is. Apparently it has something to do with a meeting between Reagan and Gorbachev during which the Washington, D.C., media elite were, in Rush's words, "squealing" with glee at the arrival of Gorbachev in our nation's capital. Anyway, Rush brought this up because Gorbachev had an op-ed in The Washington Post this morning calling for a new economic model "that will emphasize public needs and public goods, such as a cleaner environment, well-functioning infrastructure and public transportation, sound education and health systems and affordable housing." Rush's response: "Mikhail Gorbachev presided over the collapse of his country like Barack Obama is presiding over the collapse of his. And so, a man who knows how to collapse his own economy is now advising us on how to collapse ours." On Gorbachev's specific recommendations, Rush had this to add: "I don't know about you, but when I have a former communist, totalitarian dictator articulating policies identical to those being enacted by a United States president, I get scared to damn death."

After the break, Rush noted that Obama said today that the nation is in a deep recession and it will take time to pull out of it. The reason we're in a recession, retorted Rush, is because of Obama and his economic policies. Then Rush noted that Sen. Charles "no NAIL" Grassley (R-IA) attacked Obama via Twitter this weekend. Rush then explained that he's not on Twitter, but there are three or four people out there on Twitter pretending to be Rush Limbaugh. We have to assume that these people are called "Twittoheads."

Then Rush wanted to go back to February of this year as Obama explained that delaying action on the stimulus bill will turn an economic crisis into a catastrophe. That catastrophe has happened, said Rush, and we acted as he wanted us to act. Fast-forwarding to this Saturday, Rush aired a bit of Obama's radio address, in which the president said that fixing health care has become a necessity. This is the same situation and the same circumstances as back in February, Rush said, when we could not wait on the stimulus. The same strategy is now being employed to "create" this crisis and fear mentality on health care.

Another break and Rush was back to proclaiming that Obama is destroying the economy, and that he has to be tied to his failures because that's the only hope conservatives have in "stopping national health care." Then Rush offered the president a lecture on manliness: "Now during the break, I listened to a little audio of Obama with a cabinet meeting today and he was talking about the recession being worse, and he said essentially it was all George W. Bush's fault. He said circumstances beyond his control when he assumed office blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. I am infuriated when I hear this. This is gutless." Rush continued: "President Obama, it's time to stand up and be a man, and men who are six months into office do not continue to blame their predecessors. You, sir, have committed far more egregious budgetary errors than the Bush administration could have ever dreamed of."

Then Rush explained that there is "no positive economic news anywhere." We found that funny because last week, as we explained above, he was attacking the media for reporting the positive economic news that he now says doesn't exist. Anyway, Rush said that after eight months of stimulating the economy under the theory that this was the only way to revive the economy, it's time to say that the political solutions failed. This sort of economic theory has never worked, said Rush, and the only reason people think it will work now is because of the personality of Obama and his "cult-like following." As evidence of this, Rush aired a sound bite of Newsweek's Evan Thomas contrasting Reagan's and Obama's visions of America in the world, describing Reagan as "parochial" while Obama is above it all, like a "god." Rush said Reagan was not provincial; he understood America's greatness and its role in the world for good. Obama, however, sees America's role in the world as bad. Rush added: "It is offensive to the sensibilities of millions of people to hear a member of the state-run media refer to a half-black, half-white human being with no experience running anything of substance referred to as a god. He may be president of the United States, but he's not a god." Rush would later on endeavor to explain why Obama's racial makeup has anything to do with this.

After the break, Rush entered into a lengthy monologue on how "childish," "babyish," and "immature" for Obama to blame his predecessor for the problems he inherited. Rush then explained what Obama really inherited: the greatest nation in the world, the financial capital of the world, a nation which liberated billions of people, and the responsibility to lead it responsibly. "He did not inherit a mess," said Rush, he inherited the United States of America. And what has he done with this inheritance, asked Rush -- he's run around the world and apologized for the alleged sins of America. Rush once again reiterated: "Barack Obama did not inherit a mess; he leads a mess." Rush summed it up: "It is childish. It is babyish. It is immature. It is unbecoming anyone who holds the office of president of the United States to run around crying like a baby, while lying about the mess he inherited."

Now, we ask you -- what's more "childish": Acknowledging the reality that you came into office having to deal with one of the worst economic crises in American history, or flatly denying that there was a mess to inherit and instead filling that void with a gauzy description of the greatness of America?

Anyway, Rush led into the break explaining why he emphasized Obama's race in relation to Evan Thomas' comments -- he intended for everyone to focus on Obama's "humanity" because he is not a "god." We're still not sure why he felt we needed to be reminded that Obama is half-black and half-white: to recall that Obama is human or to disabuse us of the notion that Obama is a "god."

Greg Lewis and Lauryn Bruck contributed to this edition of the Limbaugh Wire.

Highlights from Hour 1

Outrageous comments

LIMBAUGH: Look at me. Ladies and gentlemen, there can be no other way to say this now. The gloves have to come off. It's time for people to sober up. The president of the United States, Barack Obama, is destroying the United States economy -- there is no other way to describe this -- systematically destroying it.

Rush, are you saying he's doing this on purpose? Not going there. It doesn't matter. What matters is the United States economy is being destroyed.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev called for a perestroika -- a top-to-bottom reform in the West -- arguing that the West's current economic model was unsustainable and needed replacement. Commenting on the current global economic crisis, Gorbachev, who presided over the collapse of his country -- and that's the right way to describe it. Gorbachev is credited for ending the Cold War.

Mikhail Gorbachev presided over the collapse of his country like Barack Obama is presiding over the collapse of his. And so, a man who knows how to collapse his own economy is now advising us on how to collapse ours.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Gorbachev then predicted, perhaps, even greater upheaval down the road, insisted the current economic and social model existing in the West needs replacing. He is endorsing what Obama is doing: tearing apart the greatest economy in the history of the world. Mikhail Gorbachev, who presided over the collapse of his own economy, essentially now endorsing the same steps taken by Barack Obama.

I don't know about you, but when I have a former communist, totalitarian dictator articulating policies identical to those being enacted by a United States president, I get scared to damn death.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Now during the break, I listened to a little audio of Obama with a cabinet meeting today and he was talking about the recession being worse, and he said essentially it was all George W. Bush's fault. He said circumstances beyond his control when he assumed office blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. I am infuriated when I hear this. This is gutless.

President Obama, it's time to stand up and be a man, and men who are six months into office do not continue to blame their predecessors. You, sir, have committed far more egregious budgetary errors than the Bush administration could have ever dreamed of.

Mr. Obama's financial plans, his economic plans are an unmitigated disaster that are destroying the United States economy. There is no other way to put it. There is no previous president in this country who sat out to do -- who set out to do what Barack Obama is doing. No president in the history of this country sought to destroy the economy of the United States of America. Barack Obama must want that to happen because that's what his policies are doing, and today, he doubled down on them.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: There you have it. Government-run Newsweek Evan Thomas: "He's a god." Obama is a god. Reagan was parochial. Reagan, he only cared about America, but Obama is above that now. He's not chauvinistic. We're not just provincial. Ronald Reagan was not provincial. Ronald Reagan understood American exceptionalism. Ronald Reagan understood America's greatness. Ronald Reagan understood America's role in the world for good.

Mr. Thomas, Barack Obama sees America's role in the world as not good. It is offensive to the sensibilities of millions of people to hear a member of the state-run media refer to a half-black, half-white human being with no experience running anything of substance referred to as a god. He may be president of the United States, but he's not a god.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: He inherited the Constitution of the United States. He did not claim the right to remake it, to rewrite it, to change it. He swore to uphold it. Then he's in the process of wreaking as much damage to the Constitution as he can get away with, with nominations like Sonia Sotomayor, as he is wreaking damage to the U.S. economy. Barack Obama did not inherit a mess; he leads a mess.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: He has run around the world and apologized at every stop he makes for what he considers the sins, the immorality, and the unjust unfairness of the way he perceives the United States of America. He inherited a country that liberates the oppressed. As I said, he inherited the greatest economy in history. He inherited that, nothing more, nothing less, plus the Constitution.

There is nothing to apologize for. It is childish. It is babyish. It is immature. It is unbecoming anyone who holds the office of president of the United States to run around crying like a baby, while lying about the mess he inherited.

This hour of the Limbaugh Wire brought to you by repetition, which brought you this hour of the Limbaugh Wire
By Simon Maloy

This is one of those days, folks. It's one of those days when we can listen to an entire broadcast of The Rush Limbaugh Show and hear nothing but the same thing, repeated ad nauseam, with increasing degrees of shrillness. For example, the overarching theme of today's program has and will continue to be President Obama's alleged plans to destroy the economy. For example, after spending an entire hour saying over and over that Obama is destroying the economy, Rush came back for hour two with: "A 'recovery act'? 'We've done more than ever, faster than ever'? Yes, to destroy the U.S. economy. If you want to add that, then it's a true statement. Barack Obama has done more than ever, faster than ever to singlehandedly put this economy into a tailspin -- and anybody with a brain knows this. You don't need a Ph.D in economics to understand this. All you need is a pair of eyes, and if you're blind, be able to hear and listen. You can see the tailspin this economy is in precisely because of his moving faster, better, whatever than ever before."

Then Rush said -- and, again, stop us if you've heard this before -- that Obama wants to destroy the economy and free market economics because he wants more and more people on the government rolls, he wants statist government dominance and control. Rush said that we're down to the wire on stopping all this, and if the Democrats get health care reform, it will be tough to undo all of this, which he characterized as the biggest intervention in liberty that government can achieve.

Then Rush aired a variety of audio bites from Obama's remarks this afternoon on the economy, interspersing them with shouts about Obama destroying the economy, the recession being Obama's, etc. etc. etc. Seriously, if you didn't hear this portion of the show and want to experience what it was like, read a few past editions of the Limbaugh Wire while having someone blow a raspberry in your face. We figure that's a fairly good approximation of the spittle-flecked exercise in repetition.

After the break, Rush took his first caller of the afternoon, this one explaining that since private contractors are not eligible for unemployment, the unemployment rate could actually be artificially low. Rush said that the real unemployment rate is somewhere around 16 percent when you count the people who have stopped looking. Then Rush aired a sound bite of Obama from earlier in the year saying that he doesn't pay much attention to the daily fluctuations of the stock market and instead focuses on long-term economic strategy. The Rush aired a sound bite of Obama today saying that the market is up a bit. According to Rush, this means that Obama has nothing good to grasp on to, so he turned to the market.

After another break, Rush -- sigh... -- said that this "economic tailspin" we're in that was caused by Obama's economic policies is precisely why Rush said he wants Obama to fail. Obama's failure, said Rush for the nth time, means America's survival.

Then Rush noted that Judge Sonia Sotomayor "has broken her ankle. She fractured her ankle in an airport. She stumbled in the airport on her way to Senate meetings. Now the question is, would a white male judge have fractured his ankle in the same circumstances at the same airport on the way to Senate meetings?" Hilarious.

Rush then took another call, this one from a woman who said that it's great that Michelle Obama and the kids are in Paris and Obama's golfing while she's out futilely looking for work. The caller also wanted to know how much more Americans are going to be paying for national health care. Rush said everyone is going to be paying more in taxes, and Obama is planning on reducing, if not eliminating, tax deductions for top brackets. It's a disaster that he has planned, said Rush, and people are going to be laid off as everyone is required to have health insurance. And just in case you haven't been convinced already on this whole concept of repetition we've noted, Rush added: "We're on the cusp of an unmitigated national disaster and catastrophe. There is no possible way to overstate this. Folks, you know me. I am not an alarmist. I am an optimist. I try to find the good things about every day. I want to enjoy life and I want to help as many other people enjoy life. But I'll tell you, what I see coming down the pike, as it gets worse and worse and worse, the architects of this saying, 'Let's do more of what's making it worse' -- that it's time to put the foot down. This is an unmitigated disaster. It is an Obama-caused tailspin and it has to be stopped. It must be stopped for the sake of everybody's kids and grandkids and great-grandkids, and the country as well."

After another break, Rush came back with another knee-slapper about Sotomayor's broken ankle that sounded suspiciously familiar: "Given Sotomayor's preference for Latinas in every walk of life, I hope she can find a wise Latina doctor to set that ankle as opposed to an average white doctor, because the wise Latina doctor has a much richer experience with broken ankles, probably do a much better job of setting that ankle than an average white doctor who has not lived the rich experiences of the Latina med student and resident." It get's funnier with each... what's the word we're looking for?

Anyway, Rush then announced that Snerdley is concerned that he'll be accused of talking down the economy. Rush response -- while spitting, we might add -- was: "I hope so. I really hope so. Let them accuse me of talking down the economy, because what I'm doing is simply chronicling reality. This economy is tanking, brought about precisely and directly because of the policies of Obama and his administration."

Moving on to other topics that he's addressed ad infinitum, Rush aired audio of Newt Gingrich's comments on CBS' Face the Nation in which he rejected "purists" like Rush and welcomed moderates like Colin Powell in the Republican Party. Rush explained something for us, "for the record" -- he is not a purist, he's a conservative, plain and simple. Conservatives don't always agree with each other, said Rush. Look at Reagan -- he got independents and Democrats to vote for him, but not by pretending to be one of them. He didn't change who he was. Powell voted for Obama, said Rush, and found McCain unacceptable, and someone has to explain to him why he's supposed to be proud of that.

Rush rounded out the hour with a caller who wanted to talk about the fine D-Day speech by the "foreigner" Sarkozy [note: Sarkozy's speech was delivered in France], and the "embarrassing" speech by Obama, who was rambling and hypocritical. After the caller noted that Obama included this line in his speech -- "Citizens of all faiths and no faith came to believe that we could not remain as bystanders to the savage perpetration of death and destruction" -- Rush said that this was a nod to securing the "atheist vote," adding: "I don't blame some Americans, in fact, throwing away faith in God looking at what's happened to their country."

Greg Lewis and Lauryn Bruck contributed to this edition of the Limbaugh Wire.

Highlights from Hour 2

Outrageous comments

LIMBAUGH: What he has done has put us into the tailspin. This is the point that must reverberate coast to coast, town to town, city to city, border to border. What Barack Obama has done, what his administration has done, has put us in the tailspin.

OBAMA [audio clip]: We decided to move swiftly and boldly. And I signed the Recovery Act into law just over 100 days ago, and we've done more than ever, faster than ever, more responsibly than ever to get the gears of the economy moving again.

LIMBAUGH: That's just a -- that's a flat-out out and out lie and there is no other way to characterize it. A "recovery act"? "We've done more than ever, faster than ever"? Yes, to destroy the U.S. economy. If you want to add that, then it's a true statement. Barack Obama has done more than ever, faster than ever to singlehandedly put this economy into a tailspin -- and anybody with a brain knows this.

You don't need a Ph.D in economics to understand this. All you need is a pair of eyes, and if you're blind, be able to hear and listen. You can see the tailspin this economy is in precisely because of his moving faster, better, whatever than ever before.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: The Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor has broken her ankle. She fractured her ankle in an airport. She stumbled in the airport on her way to Senate meetings. Now the question is, would a white male judge have fractured his ankle in the same circumstances at the same airport on the way to Senate meetings?

[...]

LIMBAUGH: We're on the cusp of an unmitigated national disaster and catastrophe. There is no possible way to overstate this. Folks, you know me. I am not an alarmist. I am an optimist. I try to find the good things about every day. I want to enjoy life and I want to help as many other people enjoy life. But I'll tell you, what I see coming down the pike, as it gets worse and worse and worse, the architects of this saying, "Let's do more of what's making it worse" -- that it's time to put the foot down. This is an unmitigated disaster. It is an Obama-caused tailspin and it has to be stopped. It must be stopped for the sake of everybody's kids and grandkids and great-grandkids, and the country as well.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor fracturing her ankle in an airport on the way to Senate meetings. Given Sotomayor's preference for Latinas in every walk of life, I hope she can find a wise Latina doctor to set that ankle as opposed to an average white doctor, because the wise Latina doctor has a much richer experience with broken ankles, probably do a much better job of setting that ankle than an average white doctor who has not lived the rich experiences of the Latina med student and resident.

[...]

Now Snerdley thinks I'm going to be accused of talking down the economy. I hope so. I really hope so. Let them accuse me of talking down the economy, because what I'm doing is simply chronicling reality. This economy is tanking, brought about precisely and directly because of the policies of Obama and his administration.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: He's just trying not to offend anybody. You know, that's -- you know, he's trying to get the atheist vote. What the hell? I mean, everything with him is a political event. That's -- campaign event, and the atheist vote is a growing vote. I mean, you know, if -- I don't blame some Americans, in fact, throwing away faith in God looking at what's happened to their country. You know, some people are going to say, "What -- where is god? Save my country." I'm being halfway facetious here, folks, but I mean, he's -- the atheist vote, the agnostic vote, he's aiming for it. That's what that comment was all about.

This hour of the Limbaugh Wire brought to you by Obama's "roots"-driven Middle East policy
By Simon Maloy

It's the final hour, and Rush got it started by talking about something other than Barack Obama's dastardly scheme to destroy the American economy, shocking us to no end, and giving us hope for salvaging at least some of the show. Specifically, he read extensively from an Agence France-Presse story, which reported that "taking public transport may not be as green as you automatically think, says a new US study." Rush was particularly pleased with this line: "In some circumstances, for instance, it could be more eco-friendly to drive into a city -- even in an SUV, the bete noire of green groups -- rather than take a suburban train. It depends on seat occupancy and the underlying carbon cost of the mode of transport." Rush then derided his local light rail, saying that no one ever rides it, even though he admitted to not knowing the ridership.

After celebrating the "far-right sweep" in the European Union elections, Rush noted reports that King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, when he met with Obama last week, urged the president "to impose a solution on the festering Arab-Israeli conflict if necessary." Rush said that someone should tell Abdullah that Obama doesn't impose his values on people. Rush added: "Barack Obama delivered a big speech after meeting with the king about how the United States doesn't impose its values of freedom and democracy. He said: 'Those are kind of universal. We don't have to impose those.' Yeah, Obama doesn't impose his values on people. Just ask the unemployed. Barack Obama is the one authoritarian with a god complex. He is imposing his values on the U.S. economy and his values are destroying it." And just like that our hope for the final hour was dashed. Anyway, Rush had one final note to hit: "We know what Israel's enemies expect out of Obama -- and Obama is expected to deliver. Obama bowed to the king and the king had a directive for his subject: Impose a Mideast solution."

Then Rush moved on to a Baltimore Sun article on how "[e]xecutives of a venture capital company that has been a mainstay in Baltimore's Mid-Town neighborhood for a quarter-century told the mayor they are moving to the suburbs because their employees no longer feel safe in the city." Rush said this is what happens -- you have this migration from the cities to the suburbs once cities fall into the hands of "liberal, socialist Democrats." The cities become too dangerous, and the people who remain are the "welfare class," and thus you have blue cities and blue states full of Democrats.

After the break, Rush took a call from a gentleman who wanted to know Rush's opinion on what's going to be done regarding North Korea, Iran, and Israel. The first thing that we must understand, said Rush, is that Israel is "on their own." Rush explained: "Israel, whether you know it or not -- I think they do -- we have de-tethered. I mean, they're still an official ally but Obama's thrown them under the bus." Then Rush, clearly not content with simply invoking Obama's race to dispute his alleged godhood, suggested that Obama's heritage will influence his Middle East policy: "Obama has far more roots, heritage, ability to relate to somebody like the king of Saudi Arabia than he does with Benjamin Netanyahu. May we say that without fear of being raked over the coals for it? He said himself in his Cairo speech he was surrounded by Muslims growing up in three different countries. He's got -- he understands. He's got far more in common with the king of Saudi Arabia than he does with Benjamin Netanyahu or anybody else in Israel." And then he contradicted himself on whether Israel has been thrown under the bus or not: "So while he hasn't thrown Israel under the bus yet, they're in trouble."

With regard to Iran, Rush said, Obama has made it clear that they have the right to nuclear power. Meanwhile, Rush said, here in America, we're investing in windmills posing as cars. What's going on, said Rush, is that the regimes of North Korea and Iran are testing Obama each and every day, and as Obama runs around apologizing and doing Conflict Resolution 101, they're laughing at us. They see an opportunity to expand their spheres of influence.

After the break, Rush got in a good discussion of the coming updates to Apple's iPhone, and then took a call from a woman who tearfully offered her heartfelt appreciation for the first hour of the program today, saying that she is so proud of Rush for saying what he said. After the caller said she tried to warn off her sister from voting for Obama, Rush said that the devotion to the president is borne of party loyalty and "cult-like" appeal. You'd think that insulting someone's sibling as having a "cult-like" mindset wouldn't sit well, but the caller didn't have an objection to it. Then Rush explained that he was confident that the caller has the same opinion of the second hour of the show and this hour that she did of the first. From there, he launched into a summary of the first hour's rantings, touching all the bases -- "gutless," "childish," he inherited America, it's all Obama's fault.

One more break and Rush was back with a couple of "interesting stories" out of California. The first was from the Los Angeles Times, which reported: "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said today that he would like to see such 'radical' proposals come out of a commission now studying an overhaul of the state's tax system. The governor told the editorial board of the Sacramento Bee that he hoped the commission would not be afraid to propose something like 'a 15% straight tax.' " Rush, never one to pass up a childish joke, quipped: "He means flat tax. Fifteen percent? He said straight tax so maybe homosexuals don't have to pay any tax is what he -- well, it's California. You never know. Maybe gays will be exempted from the tax since it's a 15-percent straight tax." The next interesting story was from McClatchy, which reported that California could "become the first state in the nation to do away with welfare." Rush, as you might expect, was pleased as punch to read this.

Rush closed out the program with one more call, this one from a gentleman who said he left Detroit in 1992 and agreed with everything Rush said about how liberal Democrats make cities unsafe. Rush said that you can leave a city or a state, but you can't leave the federal government without renouncing your citizenship. That's why -- as if you weren't expecting it -- Obama's "failures" on the economy have to be labeled such and linked to him.

Well, today's show is over, and if that isn't the best news we'll receive all day, then we're looking forward to winning the lottery or accidentally curing cancer or something later this evening. But we'll be back tomorrow for more, and we hope you will be, too. Until then, Media Matters has these nifty archives that encompass everything Limbaugh, and we encourage you to give them a look.

Greg Lewis and Lauryn Bruck contributed to this edition of the Limbaugh Wire.

Highlights from Hour 3

Outrageous comments

LIMBAUGH: Barack Obama delivered a big speech after meeting with the king about how the United States doesn't impose its values of freedom and democracy. He said: "Those are kind of universal. We don't have to impose those." Yeah, Obama doesn't impose his values on people. Just ask the unemployed. Barack Obama is the one authoritarian with a god complex. He is imposing his values on the U.S. economy and his values are destroying it.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Obama makes that speech at the University of Cairo and look at the expectations it raised in the Muslim world. We know what Israel's enemies hope. We know what Israel's enemies expect out of Obama -- and Obama is expected to deliver. Obama bowed to the king and the king had a directive for his subject: Impose a Mideast solution.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Folks, Obama has far more roots, heritage, ability to relate to somebody like the king of Saudi Arabia than he does with Benjamin Netanyahu. May we say that without fear of being raked over the coals for it? He said himself in his Cairo speech he was surrounded by Muslims growing up in three different countries. He's got -- he understands. He's got far more in common with the king of Saudi Arabia than he does with Benjamin Netanyahu or anybody else in Israel.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: The governor told the editorial board of the Sacramento Bee that he hoped the commission would not be afraid to propose something like a 15-percent straight tax. He means flat tax. Fifteen percent? He said straight tax so maybe homosexuals don't have to pay any tax is what he -- well, it's California. You never know. Maybe gays will be exempted from the tax since it's a 15-percent straight tax.

America's Truth Rejector

Couldn't decide on whether Israel is "under the bus" yet:

LIMBAUGH: The first thing you have to understand about Israel is they're on their own. Israel, whether you know it or not -- I think they do -- we have de-tethered. I mean, they're still an official ally but Obama's thrown them under the bus.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: So while he hasn't thrown Israel under the bus yet, they're in trouble. I think -- I said this on the Hannity interview last week on Fox. In that interview, I didn't specify why, but I think he's got a big problem with Israel. He's got a huge problem with Israel. I'm not going to speculate. It doesn't matter what and/or why, there just is.