Hour 1: For Earth Day, Limbaugh plans to "personally" oversee destruction of two acres of rainforest
This
hour of the Limbaugh Wire brought to you by "finals week"
By Simon Maloy
Happy Earth Day, everyone. We've been eagerly anticipating all the anti-environmentalist shenanigans Rush is sure to have in store for today, but still we find ourselves skeptical that he'll be able to top this. Also, as a coda to Rush's rant yesterday about how "liberals" like Obama think the Bill of Rights is "horrible," we'd like to point to the recent remarks of one of America's more influential jurists as he discussed the Bill of Rights: "Today there is much focus on our rights. Indeed, I think there is a proliferation of rights. I am often surprised by the virtual nobility that seems to be accorded those with grievances." And who was the radical left-liberal fanatic who said those words? Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.
Rush kicked off the show by announcing that it's "Open Line Friday!" on Wednesday, because Rush will be away tomorrow and Friday. Then he dubbed the culmination of Obama's "mythical" first 100 days as "finals week," adding that you have to say Obama is "failing" because Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinjad and Fidel Castro are "ripping Obama" despite his "worldwide tours" to get them on our side.
Then Rush had to tell us something -- he's heard a lot of people say that Obama's "flip-flop" on investigations of Bush officials sanctioning torture tactics was a result of pressure from the left wing of the Democratic Party. Rush said Obama wasn't buckling to anything, he's orchestrating all of this. Then Rush let Matt Drudge take over the program for a moment, asking if we'd heard that Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano had claimed that the 9-11 terrorists had entered the U.S through Canada, or if we'd read a piece in Canada's National Post asking "how U. S. Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano got her job."
Rush then moved on to Obama's "flip-flop" regarding investigations into former Bush administration officials, claiming that if Attorney General Eric Holder does pursue investigations, then the goal won't be to secure convictions but, rather, to "destroy" the Bush officials and "criminalize" policy decisions that the administration disagrees with. Rush said this could be the overreach everyone is waiting for. Rush went into the break seamlessly weaving together Obama's meeting with Jordan's King Abdullah, White House press secretary Robert Gibbs' "incompetence," the resignation of the White House communications director, the apparent suicide of Freddie Mac's CFO, and the Miss America pageant. Despite linking all those things together, he didn't really explain what they had in common. But he did promise that on the other side of the break he'd go through his "finals week" list of examples of Obama's "incompetent buffoonery."
After the break Rush finally acknowledged that it is Earth Day, and said he was celebrating by having all his cars driven, having his plane flown to Los Angeles and back, cranking up his air conditioning, eating "all kinds of beef," and will "personally" oversee the destruction of two acres of rainforest. Sorry, Rush. You'll have to do better than that to beat out Glenn Beck.
Then it was time for "finals week," which was simply a lengthy recitation of a "list" Rush put together "off the top of his head" of the many aspects of the nascent Obama administration that have stuck out to him. We're not going to bother repeating the whole list, because if you've listened to his show (or, better yet, read the Limbaugh Wire) for the past few weeks, you already know what was in there. We'll just give you a few phrases as a cross section of the whole rant: bowing to the Saudi king, apologizing for the U.S., tax cheats, bust of Churchill, ACORN, teleprompter, nationalization, tea parties, and census.
After reading the list, Rush said the administration has been "one part joke, one part unbelievable, and many parts scary." After attacking the "sycophantic" media's coverage of Obama, Rush the world is "making a joke of our country," and the media is praising Obama for it.
Back from the break, Rush noted that Fidel Castro had rebuffed Obama's insistence that Cuba free political prisoners and cut taxes on remittances from the United States. Rush claimed this was an example of the "teacher" trying to "educate the student." Then Rush moved on to Hillary Clinton saying in House testimony today that she didn't consider Dick Cheney to be a reliable source of information on interrogation tactics. Rush then explained how everyone "need[s] to look at this interrogation stuff." According to Rush: "Imagine that one of these people has a member of your family and they're threatening to behead them, but you don't know where they are. We have a prisoner who knows where they are. You wanna bet on how much you would be willing to support these very techniques which are said to have worked? It's even in The New York Times today: The interrogation techniques that Obama has now banned worked." Rush was referring to the Times' report on a memo from National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair that said "the harsh interrogation techniques banned by the White House did produce significant information that helped the nation in its struggle with terrorists." Rush was only giving half the story, though, as Blair also said: "The information gained from these techniques was valuable in some instances, but there is no way of knowing whether the same information could have been obtained through other means. ... The bottom line is these techniques have hurt our image around the world, the damage they have done to our interests far outweighed whatever benefit they gave us and they are not essential to our national security."
Rush then said that Obama is a "very cold" and "extremist political animal," and that he has a hard time listening to Obama speak of morality when "he supports infanticide." No ... no he didn't. Then Rush took a call from a woman who asked if Obama is playing Russian roulette with America's safety. Rush said it's tough to speculate on what Obama believes regarding the prosecution of the war on terror, but the primary reason Obama does everything he does is to make us more moral and improve the country's image.
After the break, Rush aired audio of Clinton's testimony in the House today, saying she and the president were intent upon getting to the bottom of the torture matter. Rush said this is a lie - if they did get to the bottom of it, that would show that the Obama people are screwing up the war on terror. Rush said Clinton and Napolitano and Geithner are "petty, partisan, mean-spirited little leftists" who have no idea what they're doing.
Closing out the hour, Rush noted that Wells Fargo president and chief executive John Stumpf said that "[t]he best way to generate capital is to earn it." Rush's response: "Now, in the Obama administration, this could be a hate crime."
Highlights from Hour 1
Outrageous comments
LIMBAUGH: Now we've got Fidel Castro setting Obama straight about how Cuba handles political prisoners and its economy. Fidel Castro, one of Obama's idols, calling him superficial.
[...]
LIMBAUGH: He has declared those five things morally deficient. And only now will Wall Street and CEOs, Bush and Cheney, CIA and even America be straightened out with a new moral rudder headed by himself, the One, the Messiah, Barack Obama, the Most Merciful. Yet he supports infanticide. He attended a racist, bigoted church for 20 years. He had active support of the criminal political bullying enterprise known as ACORN. He has dealings with Tony Rezko. His working relationship with Bill Ayers. Embracing a smiling Hugo Chavez. Daniel Ortega and not defending his country after it was slandered. This guy tells us he's in charge of our new morality. Sorry, folks, it's just tough to stomach, tough to deal with on a daily basis.
[...]
LIMBAUGH: The Wells Fargo president and chief executive, John Stumpf ,with the quote of the day: "The best way to generate capital is to earn it." Now, in the Obama administration, this could be a hate crime. Because in the Obama administration, the best way to generate capital is to print it and to borrow it and then to give it away or to tax it.
Enemies list
Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano:
LIMBAUGH: I mean, the Canadians -- did you hear Janet Napolitano the other day? Janet Napolitano -- this is a rumor that has been debunked years ago. Janet Napolitano said the 9-11 hijackers actually got in our country through Canada. So now the Canadians are up in arms, and the National Post in Canada has a piece, "How in the hell did this woman get her job?" Earlier this week, she says it's not a crime to illegally enter the country, cross the border, when it is. She's a ditz. She's a total hick, hack, left-wing kook that is now head of -- in charge of Homeland Security.
America's Truth Rejector
Misleadingly cited New York Times report on Blair memo:
LIMBAUGH: Let me ask something -- the way you need to look at this interrogation stuff, folks. Imagine that one of these people has a member of your family and they're threatening to behead them, but you don't know where they are. We have a prisoner who knows where they are. You wanna bet on how much you would be willing to support these very techniques which are said to have worked? It's even in The New York Times today: The interrogation techniques that Obama has now banned worked.
Clips from this hour
Limbaugh on Earth Day: "I personally am going to see to it that we lose 2 acres of rain forest"
Why am I not surprised. The man wants the country to fail, so it seems only logical that he doesn't care about the planet it's on either.
You're not surprised because you only listen to Limbaugh's critics and not the man himself. If you did you would never have said, "The man wants the country to fail, ..." MM may be a fine place to find criticism of Conservatives. But it's a lousy place to find knowledge about Conservatives. It's comparable to relying on Limbaugh to give you insight into Liberals. Limbaugh doesn't want America to fail. He believes that Obama's policies will severely damage America and so he wants those policies and their advocates to fail.
I was once active in environmental causes but dropped them because they stopped being about the environment. When people like Limbaugh express anti-envronmentalist sentiments that is NOT an expression of anti-environment sentiments. The environmental preservation movement was usurped by partisans who exploit it to provide the rationale for government to exercise increased control over private property. I saw it happen. Limbaugh is against the pseudo environmentalists that pretend that the way to preseve nature is to transform environmentalism into a partisan issue for a political party that never represents more than half of the population.
What part of IF Obama fails, THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FAILS don't you get!!!!!
You can't separate Obama from the country because HE IS THE PRESIDENT!!!
You can try to cover for Rush by using that pathetic excuse, "he was talking about liberal policies", but it doesn't wash. IF Obama succeeds, AMERICA succeeds!! IF Obama succeeds, blowhards like Rush and Hannity will look like the buffoons they truly are.
For all the right wing nutz: Our government is us, "We, the people..." In the US of A the people are the government and the government is the people. Is that really so hard to understand?
So now it looks like you want to tell us that Rush is really an environmentalist.
And I'm really the king of Spain.
Why don't you just acknowledge reality: He's a lyin' sack of conservative crap. Say it 5 or 10 times in front of your mirror every day, you'll be surprised, you'll have it down in no time.
Rush doesn't know the first thing about the environment. Let me give you an example:
For years Rush said: "Why are these liberals complaining about a greenhouse effect? There is no such thing as a greenhouse effect."
I'd get mad when he said that. Any lib could have told him that what Rush meant to say was that there is no "global warming." Rush must have been confusing the terms. I'd want to scream at him, "Of course there is a greenhouse effect. Its here and its established scientific fact. Without the greenhouse effect, the oceans would freeze!"
After years of Rush making this mistake that anyone who read first paragraph on global warming would know was wrong, Rush interviewed conservative environmental leader and former Washington Governor Dixie Lee Ray. Rush asked her about the crazy liberals who believed in the greenhouse effect and she said, "Oh no, Rush, the greenhouse effected is accepted scientific fact and without the greenhouse effect, the oceans would freeze."
After that, for months, Rush kept saying, "These crazy liberals are all upset about the greenhouse effect. Without the greenhouse effect the oceans would freeze!"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenhouse_effect
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_warming
You and Rush share your assessment of the motives of the environmental movement. I don't know how you came to the conclusion that its all about giving the government control over private property. I can tell you how Rush determines motives.
Rush accused the New York Times of covering up the fact that former Ohio Senate candidate Sherrod Brown was black. Sherrod Brown is white. It was funny to watch Rush make such a big mistake, but it also told something deeper about how Rush assigns motives.
Since Brown was white, the New York Times engaged in no cover up. Since the New York Times didn't, there must not have been any evidence that they did. So Rush must have accused the Times of this terrible conspiracy with no evidence at all. What made Rush think there was a conspiracy? Nothing at all but his own mind. Rush has a close minded approach with numerous devices to protect his emotional self. If something disagrees with him, it must be doing some act of evil. Rush has no limits on how wild his conspiracy theories can get when it comes to defending his world views. Thus, environmentalists must be out to destroy free enterprise in Rush's mind.
When one takes into account size of the mistakes Rush made, there are obviously other reasons why someone might disagree with him.
Seems the more people know the less they care about Global Warming:
CATO Institutes senior fellow Michal's
Wasn't the rain forest supposed to have dissapeared by 2000 according to the hand wringers of the '80's?
The only ones fighting against global warming are the overpaid spokespeople of the coal and oil industries.
I always thought that it wasn't slander if it was true.
Nicaragua has had a lot of bad history with US interventions.
Now I'm taliking to mself:
The previous post should have been prefaced with:
Regarding Daniel Ortega and his"slander"
I'd say Ole BlunderRush personally destroys about two acres of rain forest every day. It's called "Lunch."