Limbaugh falsely claimed Clinton "imposed" international family planning funding policy
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SUMMARY: On Hannity, speaking of President Obama's reported plan to reverse the U.S. government's Mexico City policy restricting federal funding for international family planning groups, Rush Limbaugh falsely claimed "[former President] Clinton imposed it." In fact, the Mexico City policy prohibiting the federal government from providing funds to international family planning groups that promote abortion or provide information, counseling, or referrals about abortion services in other nations was imposed by President Reagan, rescinded by Clinton, and revived by George W. Bush.
On the January 21 edition of Fox News' Hannity, speaking of President Barack Obama's reported plan to issue an executive order rescinding the U.S. government's Mexico City policy on disbursing family planning funds, nationally syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh falsely claimed "[former President Bill] Clinton imposed it, [former President] Bush rescinded it, Obama's going to re-impose it."
In fact, former President Ronald Reagan first imposed the Mexico City policy, which prohibits the federal government from providing funds to international family planning groups that promote abortion or provide information, counseling, or referrals about abortion services in other nations. The policy, named for the city hosting the United Nations International Conference on Population in 1984 where the policy was announced, reportedly caused the U.S. Agency for International Development to cut off support for The International Planned Parenthood Federation -- which had been receiving about $15 million annually from the agency -- when the group refused to abide by the restrictions on funding. Clinton issued a memorandum to rescind the policy in 1993, but Bush reinstated the policy in 2001.
In his "Memorandum for the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development" reinstating the Mexico City policy, Bush said:
The Mexico City Policy announced by President Reagan in 1984 required nongovernmental organizations to agree as a condition of their receipt of Federal funds that such organizations would neither perform nor actively promote abortion as a method of family planning in other nations. This policy was in effect until it was rescinded on January 22, 1993.
It is my conviction that taxpayer funds should not be used to pay for abortions or advocate or actively promote abortion, either here or abroad. It is therefore my belief that the Mexico City Policy should be restored. Accordingly, I hereby rescind the "Memorandum for the Acting Administrator for the Agency for International Development, Subject: AID Family Planning Grants/Mexico City Policy," dated January 22, 1993, and I direct the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development to reinstate in full all of the requirements of the Mexico City Policy in effect on January 19, 1993.
From the January 21 edition of Fox News' Hannity:
HANNITY: Let's take that a step further here, because, all throughout the election, we all talked about the Chicago way, his radical friends, associates, et cetera.
LIMBAUGH: Yeah.
HANNITY: His past voting record -- by the way, I brought it up a lot, you brought it up a lot, we all talked about it -- what -- do you think he really is that and people either ignored it, people don't care, or is he just somebody who is politically expedient? That's what he had to do in Chicago?
LIMBAUGH: We don't know. See, this is the thing. Now, normally, we would have -- a mainstream media would have vetted this guy and we would know this. We don't know what he is. That's the whole point. And people don't care what he is. They don't care who he is. They care that he's black. They care that he's historic. They care that -- they think he's an intellectual because of the way he speaks. It's all about how he speaks. I mean, I look at some of the facial expressions of people when they're watching the guy, and it's frightening.
But I'm a thinker. And a lot of people, I guess, aren't. People are emotional, and they react emotionally to things, and if he makes them feel good, especially in economic bad times, then that's all they're really going to care about. But I -- I have to assume that he is who he is, and his radical associations are certainly things that have defined him. I mean, if you look at the executive orders that he's promised to issue, he's going to overturn the abortion law that has guided who we fund overseas in terms of family planning, and that's been a roller coaster.
You know, Clinton imposed it, Bush rescinded it, Obama's going to re-impose it and so forth. He's going to issue an executive order to close Guantánamo Bay, but it ain't going to happen for four years.
Limbaugh, "..I'm a thinker".
Yeah and I'm the Flocking Queen of Penguins.
LIMBAUGH: "But I'm a thinker..."
...who is thinking with a defective brain.
I'll be willing to bet that EL FLUSHBO'S brain has no more than 2 or 3 functioning cells
I am not sure I agree.
First off, I don't like the man's affect, his hate or most of what he says.
I also do not think he is cerebrally challenged. He knows exactly what he is doing which is why he needs to be shut down - his attacks and hate border on slander. If he were in fact "an idiot," we could say "forgive him for he knows not what he does." He is a master of manipulation and propaganda - a true fascist in the most basic sense of the term.
I look forward to the day when he finally does make that fatal mistake and he is off the air. He can then return to his life of narcissism and opiate addiction.
"I look forward to the day when he finally does make that fatal mistake and he is off the air." What, exactly, would it take to get this lying a** off the air? There doesn't seem to BE any line over which he cannot cross. Look at how MUCH free publicity Media Matters ALONE gives this fool. Potty mouth Don Imus had to use foul and racist language before he was taken off TEMPORARILY and re-instated almost immediately, WITH a raise. There is NO accountability for these slimeballs. If I spell out the word for a**, MM refuses to print it. There is certainly a line for US that we cannot cross; why none for Limbaugh?
yea. Everytime MMFA mentions limpybahahahaha's name Millions and millions of MMFA subscribers flock to limpy's show. limpy is a copraphagichebraphrenic and a glutton drug addict
Useless, pill-poppiong, sexual deviant using race to drive a wedge between a nation's people.
Poppiong?
Oh, you are just trying to censor him while he tells mindless swill to clueless people!
I wonder how many people, deep down, actually believe what Limbaugh says; he's a pathological liar and has been exposed as one many times. I don't mean how many people will defend him -- trolls will always do that -- I mean actually believe the self-contradictory, hate-filled, ridiculousness that he spouts. Most people that I know who listen to Rush privately admit that they know he lies, but they listen to him anyway (possibly as some kind of security blanket?). Even the most rabidly neocon people I know, when faced with proof of Rush's many lies, admit that he's not telling the truth. Somehow, though, when in a group, they flock together and happily declare Rush to be brilliant, insightful, and honest. I wonder what goes on in their minds when they do this. I doubt we'll ever know.
I honestly don't think Limbaugh's listeners cling to the details of his homilies...maybe some do. More likely what provides comfort and satisfaction to them is just the steady stream of negativity towards liberals. According to Limbaugh every known evil, catastrophe or failure known to mankind has been caused by liberals. And for some strange reason that makes his listeners feel better knwoing they have liberals to blame for everything.
In my experince it depends on what you mean by "believe." They BELIEVE the general tone and point, but don't really pick up on the details he used to support the argument. They believe his conclusion, thinking that, having provided a lot of details, it must have been a well-reasoned argument.
BUT most of them can't spot the bulls#it right away, since they don't already know all the facts right off the top of their heads. (And who really does? That's why I come here!) And when you point out the bulls#it he used to support his point, they suddenly forget what it was he exactly said. I've gotten "He didn't say that" or "He didn't say it like that" or "He didn't MEAN that" (that's my fav - How the hell would you know?) or "That's out of context" (as if FACTUAL ERRORS require a context!) And since they don't really believe YOU when you point out that all those details that supported his argument are all bulls#it, they end up keeping their belief intact. Of course... they still have no grasp of what was actually said but they BELIEVE what they THINK they heard. And since that matches their pre-exsisting bias on the matter at hand, all cognitive dissidance is handily avoided.
Just go to the Sean Hannity website. The forums there...Rush is a religious figure there. I got banned for "contempt of affiliate." I referred to him as a racist pillhead. A fellow Floridain ratted me out
I referred to him (Limbaugh) as a racist pillhead.
But yet on Hannity's forum President Barack Obama is routinely referred to, with impunity, as a filthy, lying Marxist...among other unsavory appellations.
Do you realize that approximately 12% of the population STILL believe that Bush was a great president? And these are only the ones who ADMIT it. What about the millions of loons "out there" who keep their mouths shut: the ones who also revere the likes of Limbaugh, Savage, Hannity, Wallace, and the rest? Why do you think Fox "News" is still a popular "source" for millions of people? The numbers are too large to describe them as a "fringe". Terrifying, ain't it?
more on loons. There are also millions of people collectively believe (or believed)what falweell, dobson, benny henn, robertson, billybob o'really, tilton, swaggart, hitler, jim jones, l.ron hubbard, etc says or said
mmfa booted this one. Limbaugh did get wrong about who imposed it, it was originally Reagan, not Clinton. but Rush is saying that we do not fund international family planning groups that promote or provide abortion since Bush, as Reagan before him. Clinton overturned and Obama will do it as well. mmfa knew the point Rush was making, and it's not inaccurate.
mmfa knew the point Rush was making, and it's not inaccurate.
Really? His words are taken out of context ? Please get real james.
the only thing Rush got wrong was who imposed it and who rescinded it. what striking difference does that make regarding Rush's point about family planning and funding? it doesn't.
the only thing Rush got wrong was who imposed it and who rescinded it - jamesb
Yup.
Those pesky details just don't matter.
His listeners know what he means and he's on their side. That's all that matters.
And why is it that the explanation provided by numbnutt's defenders on this site always includes some clarification of the drug addicts words. Usually twisting them 180 degrees from what he actually said?
The point Rush was making is that Obama would be overturning a Clinton directive. Plain and simple, this is a case of conservative misinformation.
? Rush is saying OBama and Clinton are on the same page, he isn't saying OBama would overturn a Clinton anything.
But the Crazy Guggenheim screen shot is great!
I wonder about Rush's audience as well, how many can actually believe him. I heard him today trying to explain his latest blunder,in trying to go against the wingnut talking point of "hoping Obama does well", Rush gave a four word quote; "I hope he fails".
Today, he was trying to backpedal, explaining it as hoping that Obama fails to implement his policies. I was trying to conceive of a person, some fence-sitter who Rush has to explain things like this too. Am I wrong to think the world can be divided into 2 groups, those who believe Rush and don't need any explanations, just instructions, and the rest of us who knew he was full of crap the minute we first heard him?
Sorry, it's just that I'm having trouble conceiving of that person, a Rush fan who questions anything.
And it's interesting that Rush is one of the pinheads who described those who disagreed with Bush on anything ,especially regarding the WOT, as "invested in failure". Imagine the liberal media person that had said "I hope he fails" at the outset of the Iraq war.
Aside from the fact that only you and I remember who Crazy Guggenheim was, at least he could sing.
"I mean, if you look at the executive orders that he's promised to issue, he's going to overturn the abortion law that has guided who we fund overseas in terms of family planning, and that's been a roller coaster. You know, Clinton imposed it, Bush rescinded it, Obama's going to re-impose it and so forth."
That's not overturning a Clinton directive. However, it is conservative misinformation because it misrepresents who took action. If Clinton "imposed" something, then presumably he would have issued some directive that forces us to fund international groups that support abortion. Overturning a directive that prevents us from doing so is clearly not the same thing.
You're wrong. He said CLINTON. In doing so he was trying to show that Obama is out of touch with the mainstream by demonstating him as radically more liberal on abortion that Clinton. (As if that would be proof anyway... Enough for dittoheads, I guess.) And Like most of what that idiot says, it's supported by total and utter BS and lies. He said what he said. He had a point. It's invalid. MMFA got it perfectly.
That screen capture...
A more apt Fox News graphic would have been:
EXCLUSIVE
Rush Limbaugh Fields Questions From Hannity While Fighting Urge To Regurgitate Entire Pot Roast He Cunsumed Just Minutes Ago
the pot roast was pre-regurgiated. no problem
Hitler was not a well educated man but he had the Gift to "GAB"! Think about it, Obama has been educated by some of our finest intitutions in the U.S.!....Limbaugh and Hannity...not a legit degree between them and they have the nerve to question our President....What "Airheads! They do demonstrate how a Hitler can be constructed...by people that listen to these fools!
hitler was a loving and compassionate guy by comparison and hitle was not a pious sectrarian unlike limpbahahahaha and inshannity
From Media Matters for America's About Us page:
Media Matters for America is a Web-based, not-for-profit, 501(c)(3) progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media.
From Dictionary.com:
misinformationnoun
information that is incorrect
Thanks for playing, James. Your prting
gifts can be pickecd up at the reception desk.
These two clowns have never done anything except sit before a mic and spew all kinds of vicious lies and vile ideologies about things that they know absolutely nothing about...OPINION IS NOT FACT! Why would anyone follow a none educated person because they spew racist lies on a daily basis???
I can answer your question, coachslife3331. Because Limbug appeals to the non-educated person who spews racist lies on a daily basis.