Fox's Carlson baselessly suggested Obama is more "concerned" with Limbaugh than "economy" and "Al Qaeda"
SUMMARY: Fox News' Gretchen Carlson suggested that President Obama is more "concerned" with Limbaugh than with "the economy" and "Al Qaeda." But the concern Obama reportedly expressed was with congressional Republicans, who he said were "listen[ing] to Rush Limbaugh" and not "get[ting] things done."
During an interview with nationally syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh on the January 29 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends, co-host Gretchen Carlson suggested that President Obama is more "concerned" with Limbaugh than with "the economy" and "Al Qaeda." Carlson also said to Limbaugh: "[I]n his first week in office ... Barack Obama chose you as his enemy, instead of, like, Al Qaeda, or possibly putting the economy on a higher platform." But the concern Obama reportedly expressed was with congressional Republicans, who he said were "listen[ing] to Rush Limbaugh" and not "get[ting] things done," including on the economy.
Limbaugh responded to Carlson, in part, by saying:
LIMBAUGH: You know, I think the Democrat Party, as a whole, and Obama look at conservatives as a bigger threat to what they want to get done than you -- than, say, [Iranian President] Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. I really do. He's willing to extend an olive branch to Ahmadinejad. He's going to send him a letter. I don't think he'll send me a letter.
According to the New York Post, Obama mentioned Limbaugh during a January 23 meeting with Republican leaders, whom he had invited to the White House to discuss the stimulus bill. The House passed the bill on January 28 without any Republican votes.
From the January 23 New York Post article:
President Obama warned Republicans on Capitol Hill today that they need to quit listening to radio king Rush Limbaugh if they want to get along with Democrats and the new administration.
"You can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done," he told top GOP leaders, whom he had invited to the White House to discuss his nearly $1 trillion stimulus package.
One White House official confirmed the comment but said he was simply trying to make a larger point about bipartisan efforts.
"There are big things that unify Republicans and Democrats," the official said. "We shouldn't let partisan politics derail what are very important things that need to get done."
From the January 29 edition of Fox News' Fox & Friends:
CARLSON: Here's what's happening right now: President Obama on the attack against radio host Rush Limbaugh, but shouldn't he be focusing more on the bigger issues affecting this country like um, hmm, the economy or how about Al Qaeda? Well, Rush Limbaugh is going to be here to weigh in. He is here live this hour.
[...]
CARLSON: But what I want to ask you when we come back is whether or not Barack Obama should be more concerned with things like the economy and maybe Al Qaeda -- if in fact we still are in a war on terror -- than you?
DOOCY: That's right. Plus, Rush has got a great -- he's got his own stimulus plan. He writes about it today in The Wall Street Journal, and he talked about it on the air this week on his show. More with Rush Limbaugh, live from sunny Palm Beach, in a moment.
[...]
CARLSON: Before we went to break, I said something about the fact that in his first week in office, that Barack Obama chose you as his enemy, instead of, like, Al Qaeda, or possibly putting the economy on a higher platform. And so, we came up with this new photo. Did you know that you're now on Mount Rushmore?
LIMBAUGH: Not officially. Can I see it?
DOOCY: Yeah.
CARLSON: Do you see it? It's on your screen. Look how good you look there.
DOOCY: Yeah. Lincoln's got nothing on you.
LIMBAUGH: That looks like it's been there all along with most of the --
CARLSON: But what do you make of the fact that you have been listed as somewhat, in some minds --
DOOCY: Public enemy #1.
CARLSON: -- yeah -- in the first week.
LIMBAUGH: Well, as I said, I don't think this was accidental, and I think that Obama does -- look. You know, I think the Democrat Party, as a whole, and Obama look at conservatives as a bigger threat to what they want to get done than you -- than, say, [Iranian President] Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. I really do.
He's willing to extend an olive branch to Ahmadinejad. He's going to send him a letter. I don't think he'll send me a letter. I don't think he will invite me to have adult beverages at the White House, as he did other Republicans, and so forth.
I mean, it's -- you know, and -- but this is what America is. That's fine. We have always been a partisan political culture. We've always been fighting for what we all believe, principally, and this is what the Republican vote was all about. They held to principles last night.
But I'm not -- look, [former President Bill] Clinton mentioned me all over the place, too, so, it's just that they know that I am the direct route to conservative base voters, and if they could discredit me, if they could marginalize me, they think that they've got Republicans out of the way.
DOOCY: All right. Rush Limbaugh, we thank you very much for joining us.
I honestly don't know what to say...
Another chihuahua yapping through the screen door...
Yeah, and how 'bout those bottom screen question marks....
"Hush Hush Rush? Dems Try and Silence Rush Limbaugh... Are You Next?"
Clearly Obama does not care about the economy and wants the terrorists to win. Fox News continues to find new ways to loose the same credibility they never had. Simply amazing.
"Dems Try and Silence Rush Limbaugh... Are You Next?"
What a bunch of weenies. Any time somebody exposes their bullsh*t, they trot out the censorship straw man.
Nobody is trying to silence, well, anyone.
But I'm all for relegating certain people into obscurity. But a slight correction, someone is trying to silence someone. Remember that reporter who was fired for his comments about bush hiding in a bunker during 9-1-1? I've heard of a few incidents like that. But I can't recall a single conservative who ever had that done to them, can you?
I think one of the really encouraging things for democrats is that the Republicans seem to have chosen Limbaugh as their new defacto leader. If the party is that far gone it's gonna be a loooong time for them in the losers column.
http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/us_world/NATLRepublican-Congressman-Apologizes-to-Rush.html
Now, who is it that's too "concerned" about PigMan?
But it's the Democrats who capitulate. Yep.
Obama will learn soon enough to ignore those like Limbaugh.
It's not Obama who needs to learn that lesson.
If 30 million Republicans learned to ignore him, we might have a chance.
Last election it seems like a lot learned to ignore him.
I doubt that it has started with my partisan conservative brother who gave up listening to Limbaugh as his 2009 New Year's Resolution, he's just the first that I know of personally, but I see the possibility of a trend. Limbaugh sees himself on the same level as the President of Iran? Of course President Obama is suggesting that serious republicans ignore this delusional, obnoxious irritant.
It seems a few Republicans still have yet to learn to fear and respect Limbaugh.
What word best describes a political party that's wrapped around the finger of a pill-popping, bloviating radio show host?
Let's not forget he's also a doctor shopping, serial divorcee and a draft dodging chickenhawk.
Obama will learn soon enough to ignore those like Limbaugh.
You and I are in agreement this time, James... I will bet that Barack Obama will not make the same mistake twice. Obama is the leader of the free world; he should not raise Limbaugh to anything near his level of importance.
A couple of weeks ago, maddog commented that we'll always have the stupid with us. I thought at the time that Obama needed a plan to deal with the stupid, since the right would surely try to use them to undermine him and regain power.
I don't know if it was a plan, but showing people that the de facto leader of the opposition is a hypocritical, egotistical, lying, jerk might be an effective move.
I honestlly think the Democrats should have surrogates, not important elected officials, referring to Rush Limbaugh dismissively as an entertainer every single night...and pointing out Limbaugh's own words, as featured in a recent thread, that his purpose is a large audience and that he's an entertainer first and a conservative second. Every night... Do not engage him but simply ridicule him. Then watch Limbaugh go too far in response... This guy is actually fighting irrelevance at the moment, which IMO is the reason for his sudden aggressiveness. He just needs a little push...
Rookie mistakes Irony. Will team Obama lear the lessons from team clinton? If you remember team c made the same kind of missteps early in his admistration. Bubba never learned though, he personally went after Rush even into his second term.
Nothing like political theatre!
Are you referring to Clinton's comments about right-wing radio influencing extremists, which didn't mention Limbaugh by name?
"If you remember team c made the same kind of missteps early in his admistration. Bubba never learned though, he personally went after Rush even into his second term."
Not trying to be condescending, but I don't remember that, can you link to something with some info or quotes?
Noteworthy to point out that Bill Clinton signed the Telecom Act, paving the way for Limbaugh and all his imitators to dominate talk radio by way of a station ownership oligopoly, and making Limbaugh an extremely wealthy drug addict.
CARLSON: Before we went to break, I said something about the fact that in his first week in office, that Barack Obama chose you as his enemy, instead of, like, Al Qaeda, or possibly putting the economy on a higher platform.
Slimeballs... Does anyone else aside from my wife and me appreciate how impressively Barack Obama has been switching gears and dealing with multiple complex issues of tremendous importance in his first week? One minute he's meeting with Republican leaders, then he's giving an important interview with Al Aarabiya where he has to choose each word carefully, and so on... Then he makes one off-the-cuff remark to Republican leaders about not listening to The Entertainer, Rush Limbaugh and these slimeballs at FOX accuse him of putting Limbaugh ahead of the economy and AlQaeda in importance? What a partisan cheap shot! I thought my regard for FOX couldn't get any lower. Apparently I was wrong...
In the 'either/or', 'black and white' world the Republicans call home, they themselves are incapable of contemplating complicated thoughts or concepts, so they assume no one else can either. It's really sad.
Of course "they" refers to republicans/conservatives
Simply gag-inducing.
Actually, I fantasize about the Republicans drafting The Entertainer, Rush Limbaugh for President in 2012...and Sarah Palin as his running mate. Talk about the end of the Republican Party for good... Let's get an Operation Chaos movement of our own going to draft Rush...Vote for the Drug-Addicted, Thrice-Divorced, Jeff Christie Guy! Okay...it's just a fantasy. ;>)
Tell him its a chance to get that Nobel Prise that Al stole from him and broke his little pea-pickin heart.
Yeah, like only the Republicans care about Al Qaeda and the economy. PUH-leeze. Obama has been doing much in the past couple of weeks for our foreign policy and the economy, and trying to get Republicans happy. Seems like Republicans are more concerned with pleasing Limbaugh.
It's not just pleasing Limbaugh. They're placing their bets on making a "Contract-with-America" style comeback in the mid terms. It's a chess game for them and the vote on the stimulus is the first move.
I agree with some of you: I don't know what to say. Like Ralph Kramden on the "Name That Tune" game show, "A-ma, a-ma, a-ma." Faux is getting even fuzzier than usual.
The Democrats have got a "contract' on Limboob and Sewage...
And a vast majority of Americans are ready to sign the contract. Our new FCC Commissioner will shortly outline the terms of the "contract."
Bu-Bye Rush-i-kins.
"Like it or not but Obama chose to demonize Limbaugh and he should pay the consequences!!!"
Really? So saying one time - "You can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done," is "demonizing" him? Apparently El Rushbo has some mighty thin skin stretched over all that blubber.
The president of the United States wields a great deal of power. A wink and a nod gets a lot done, not to mention coming right out and mentioning him by name. Obama should have learned from Nancy Reid's mistake of going to the senate floor with his attack on Limbaugh. It backfired terribly and Ms. Reid never spoke of it again. Obama should just Ignore Rush. That would be his best defense. If Obama has to come out and say anything about Limbaugh, it indicates he's uncomfortable about what Limbaugh says or Obama's position is shaky to begin with. Either way, Obama oughta be bigger than that. He is the president and Rush is just a talk-show host.