Hour 1: Rush Blames Economy On Obama: "He Did Not Inherit A Mess. He Has Created One"

This hour of the Limbaugh Wire left over from yesterday's show
By Simon Maloy

It's Tuesday, and we're back for more in spite of yesterday's prolonged exercise in shrill, soul-killing madness. And today, we expect more -- much, much more -- of the same, which will undoubtedly leave us crumpled in the corner with the lights off, muttering to ourselves the various reasons why President Obama is to blame for the economic downturn, North Korea's nuclear program, Restless Leg Syndrome, mealy peaches, and the fifth-century sack of Rome. With that in mind, dear reader(s), don't say we've never sacrificed for you...

Rush got things rolling today by saying that yesterday's show -- which we guess Rush is now viewing as something of a watershed moment -- was not born of "courage," but of love. There was a lot of reaction to yesterday's show, said Rush, particularly the first hour, but to call his work "courageous" is wrong. Rush said he looks at what he does every day as a function of love -- love for the country and the people who make it work, and love for the ability to speak freely. Rush also said he's hearing that a lot of people are afraid to speak out about Obama. Rush understands that -- they're surrounded by "braindead liberals" and Democrats with their "cult-like" thinking. The way to counteract assaults on free speech, said Rush, is to shout louder.

Then Rush made good on our prediction, saying that he was going to revisit a January 10 YouTube address by then-President-elect Obama on the stimulus package. Rush said it is hard to listen to the January 10 address because, even then, there was time to help the economy and protect jobs, and the opposition to Obama should have mounted in all sectors at that point. That was five months ago, Rush said, and we can now revisit it and assess the results. Anyway, Rush asked us to remember the response to this obvious trainwreck of a plan -- we knew this would happen. Anyone with a brain knew what Obama was proposing was a disaster.

After the break, Rush got to the January YouTube address, airing a sound bite of Obama saying that his first job is to put people back to work, and that he's working with his economic team on the recovery and reinvestment act. Rush said it was indeed an extraordinary plan -- extraordinary in that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid wrote it, the Republicans were shut out of debate, and no one read it. Millions of jobs have been lost since it passed, said Rush, and people thought we'd be going back to work by now, and that's not happening. Rush then moved on to the next audio bite, which featured Obama saying that we can't continue on our current path, the recession could linger for years if nothing is done, and unemployment could reach double digits. Rush said we did what he wanted to do and now we might be looking at a depression, not a recession. We're still looking at double-digit unemployment, said Rush, because Obama inflicted a plan that is wreaking havoc on the economy (sound familiar?).

Then there was this gem from Rush: "He has made the situation worse. He did not inherit a mess. He has created one. We were not in a mess. It was all trumped up. We didn't need TARP. It was not that pressing. We didn't need all these financial bailouts." Remember yesterday when Rush accused Obama of being "childish" and "immature" regarding the economy? Well, abjectly denying that Obama inherited an economic mess is the equivalent of sticking your fingers in your ears and shouting, "LA LA LA LA LA I CAN'T HEAR YOU LA LA LA LA LA."

Anyway, Rush moved on to another January sound bite from Obama, in which the president said that Christina Romer and Jared Bernstein conducted analysis of the recovery plan and came up with projections that confirm the plan would save or create 3 million jobs, 90 percent of them in the private sector. Rush's response? "He's so smug." Rush said that the "saved jobs" figure is "BS" and a "lie" because there's no way to calculate it. No jobs are being saved, said Rush. They're being lost. After playing a quick audio bite of Obama saying that the jobs created will be long-term, Rush again attacked Obama as "smug," adding: "The problem is we're heading down the path where we're not going to lead the world in anything. We're not going to lead the world in technology. We're not going to lead the world in science. We're not going to lead the world in medicine if this man gets his way."

After the break, we were still on Obama's address as Rush played one more sound bite in which Obama said that he's confident if we summon that great American spirit, we'll meet our challenges and overcome them. Rush responded: "He's not confident. People are confusing Barack Obama's outsized ego for confidence. His ego is such -- his own messianic complex is such he thinks that he can convince us to happily sacrifice and not oppose anything for his abject failure." Rush also counseled: "This smug, inexperienced, egocentric fool must be stopped." Piling on, Rush said: "He did not inherit the stimulus bill, he created it. He wanted it." That's a fine riposte to the multitudes of people out there who are saying that Obama inherited the stimulus bill that he signed into law.

After more ranting and raving about how Obama's agenda is aimed at destroying the economy, Rush turned his sights on Jared Bernstein's press briefing yesterday, zeroing in on this comment from Bernstein regarding his unemployment estimates from January: "[T]hat was before we had fourth-quarter results on GDP, which we later found out was contracting on an annual rate of 6 percent, far worse than we expected at that time." This was "flat-out pap," said Rush. "Plain and simple BS." He didn't offer any explanation as to why he thought it was "BS," other than claiming that Bernstein is not "optimistic," but is instead implementing economic plans that are based on pessimism and are -- you guessed it -- destroying the American economy.

Then Rush attacked Bernstein for saying of job creation: "For example, tax cuts generate a smaller multiplier than direct government spending." Rush responded: "[T]hat is absurd. And even Christina Romer, before she joined the Obama administration, said so -- that tax cuts generate something like a buck and a half to two bucks of revenue and economic output where government spending is a negative. And yet, she has thrown away everything she knows as an economist to serve Barack Obama." That's actually a warmed-over distortion of Romer's economic writing that got started with House Minority Leader John Boehner.

Rush had one more Bernstein sound bite for us, in which Bernstein explained to reporters the calculations he uses. Rush was aghast that the media were asking for clarification on these points -- it was evidence, in Rush's mind, that the media are asking for guidance from the administration.

After one more break, Rush offered an extended rant on the government-run media allegedly ignoring stories of suffering in America as a consequence of the economy -- stories they reported ad nauseam during Republican administrations, Rush alleged. Rush was particularly insistent that the media cover how children in America are going hungry. Now, mind you, he wants the media to report this not to enlighten the American people, but rather to inflict political damage on Obama. But, unbeknownst to Rush, the media are reporting those stories -- just last week the CBS Evening News filed the report, "For Some Kids, Hunger All Too Real."

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

Highlights from Hour 1

Outrageous comments

LIMBAUGH: Now what he was describing was we've got to -- again, he's dumping on Bush and dumping on his predecessors. He has made the situation worse. He did not inherit a mess. He has created one. We were not in a mess. It was all trumped up. We didn't need TARP. It was not that pressing. We didn't need all these financial bailouts.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: The problem is we're heading down the path where we're not going to lead the world in anything. We're not going to lead the world in technology. We're not going to lead the world in science. We're not going to lead the world in medicine if this man gets his way. The Chinese are scared to death about our debt. There's another story about it today. It's a mess. Everybody involved knows this is a mess.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Last sound bite here from President-elect Obama, January 10th. This was his YouTube address to the nation.

OBAMA [audio clip]: And I am confident that if we come together and summon that great American spirit once again, we will meet the challenges of our time and write the next great chapter in our American story.

LIMBAUGH: He's not confident. People are confusing Barack Obama's outsized ego for confidence. His ego is such -- his own messianic complex is such he thinks that he can convince us to happily sacrifice and not oppose anything for his abject failure.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: These people in the White House -- Jared Bernstein, Christina Romer -- dirty little secret: They know that they have been tasked with destroying the private sector of the United States economy. They know it. They are employees of Obama. They have to be loyal. They are out there spewing absolute drivel that makes no common sense. They admit they're guessing. These are estimates based on the spending.

America's Truth Rejector

Repeated distortion of Christina Romer's economic writing:

LIMBAUGH: When he said that tax cuts generate a smaller multiplier than direct government spending, that is absurd. And even Christina Romer, before she joined the Obama administration, said so -- that tax cuts generate something like a buck and a half to two bucks of revenue and economic output where government spending is a negative. And yet, she has thrown away everything she knows as an economist to serve Barack Obama.