This hour of the Limbaugh Wire brought to you by Rush's L.A. story
By Simon Maloy

It's a dreary, rainy afternoon here in Washington, D.C. -- world headquarters of the Limbaugh Wire. To escape the gloom, we've taken to flights of fancy, mimicking Rush in sniffing out secret plans and conspiracies wherever we can. We think we've hit upon one that Rush has thus far missed. As you're all probably aware, Sen. Arlen Specter jumped up a few notches in the alphabet yesterday, going from (R-PA) to (D-PA). While that's interesting in and of itself, what got our tinfoil hat buzzing was the key role Vice President Biden played in Specter's switch. So, the way we see it, the Obama administration -- in conjunction with ACORN, makers of smart meters, and the ghost of Saul Alinsky -- is enacting a secret plan to exploit fissures within the GOP, and spurred the Specter switch to force Republicans to choose between the center and the far right (see Specter reactions from Sen. Olympia Snowe and Sen. Jim DeMint). As such, the White House is playing Rush like a fiddle -- what better reaction could they have hoped to get from the unofficial head of the GOP than: “It's no great loss for the conservative movement and really not for the Republican Party”?

Or maybe we're just crazy.

Anyway, Rush got things started with Specter, professing to be “stunned” by the way in which the political class is handling his defection, saying they're reacting as if a religious leader had abandoned his religion. That's not the case, Rush said -- Specter was “dead weight,” and Jim DeMint “got it right” (see above), but he and other Republicans who got it right are being bashed by Democrats and even some Republicans. If you listen to those Republicans and the media, Rush said, you'd think the Republican Party is never coming back. Rush attributed all this to being “drunk” with “Obamaism.”

Then Rush explained that he only got 90 minutes of sleep last night because he had to fly back from Los Angeles, where he participated in a debate with Harold Ford, Willie Brown, and Ed Gillespie, moderated by Frank Luntz. Rush explained that the audience for the debate were “the masters of the universe,” some of the most accomplished people in finance in the world. Unfortunately, Rush said, they've been “corrupted” by Obama -- they don't like his policies, but they love him and they don't react well to criticism of him. It was “disappointing” to Rush, who explained that there is “a definite leftward tilt” in the “corporate world.” Anyway, Rush said that he knows and likes Harold Ford and Willie Brown, but they were tossing out “clichés” last night, like the “myth” that the Bush years and the Bush economy were a “disaster.”

Then Rush shifted back to Specter, saying that Specter “voted for one of the most irresponsible pieces of legislation in modern history”: Obama's stimulus plan. Speaking of stimulus, Rush highlighted that the economy shrank at about a 6-percent pace in the first quarter of 2009, and claimed he was seeing several people say that we can't blame Obama because he's only been in office 100 days and it wouldn't be fair. “Why can't we blame Obama?” Rush demanded. Hasn't the economy been stimulated? he asked. But then, he added: “Now, in one sense, I can see the point. Yeah, we passed the stimulus bill, but most of it doesn't really get into good gear until 2010. But, folks, I hate to remind you, but when the rest of this stupid plan goes into action, we are really going to be in the sewer.” So, just so we're clear, Rush says it's a “myth” and a “cliché” to call the Bush economic policies a “disaster,” but it's perfectly fine to blame Obama for economic destruction that hasn't happened yet.

Leading into the break, Rush repeated his claim that Specter voted for one of the most irresponsible pieces of legislation in modern history, and that he “joined with the most radical liberal elements of the Democrat Party.” That's what caused Pat Toomey to challenge Specter -- isn't that how politics works?

During the next two segment, Rush aired sound bites of his debate performance last night. To be honest, there was nothing there any of you haven't heard before if you've been listening to Rush or, better yet, reading the Limbaugh Wire -- smallest minority in the world is the individual, green energy is a myth, AIG bonuses were about class envy, etc. The only bits that stood out to us as noteworthy were his (generous, we thought) grading of Obama's first 100 days as “barely a D,” and his claim that “Barack Obama thinks that -- and a lot of Democrats think the country is unjust and immoral, has been for a long time; compounded under Bush.”

After we were done reliving Rush's night out in L.A., Rush noted that Obama is celebrating his first 100 days with a town hall meeting in Missouri, and he aired a couple of sound bites, cautioning the tea partiers that Obama was “really irritated by what you did.” In the audio clip, the president said: “Those of you who are watching certain news channels on which I'm not very popular, and you see folks waving tea bags around, let me remind them that I am happy to have a serious conversation about how we are going to cut our health care costs down over the long term, how we are going to stabilize Social Security.” Rush thought this was “not wise” on the part of a president who is supposed to have great political instincts, calling it a “bitter clinger moment.” Now, we're not entirely sure the tea partiers could be considered a viable constituency for Obama regardless of what he says, so we're not sure courting them is the best use of Obama's time. Anyway, Rush concluded: "[Y]ou know, he's not president of all the people. I mean, this guy, he's cold and he is partisan."

Anyhow, Rush closed out the hour reminding everyone who thinks the eight years of Bush were a “failure” that Air Force One buzzed lower Manhattan on Monday, causing a bit of a panic. This means the people of New York City haven't forgotten 9-11. All they have to do is see a jumbo jet to send them into a panic. We didn't have any more of those jets crashing into those buildings the past eight years, Rush said, and he found it “fascinating” that those fears are realized again by an act taken by the Obama administration.

Highlights from Hour 1

Outrageous comments

LIMBAUGH: Now, in one sense, I can see the point. Yeah, we passed the stimulus bill, but most of it doesn't really get into good gear until 2010. But, folks, I hate to remind you, but when the rest of this stupid plan goes into action, we are really going to be in the sewer.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Barack Obama thinks that -- and a lot of Democrats think the country is unjust and immoral, has been for a long time; compounded under Bush -- I know what the template is -- and that if we just run around saying, “Look, we're different. We're morally superior. We're better people. We're different. Now, you can trust us. We're not from the old country here that was racist, sexist, bigoted, and so forth and so on.” And I think all that does is convey weakness to our enemies.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: Now, this is not wise. I mean, this is a man who supposedly has great political instincts, correct? Barack Obama. But he's -- this is a bitter clinger moment here. He's looking at you people who went to the tea parties -- he doesn't like you at all -- “waving teabags around. Let me just remind them I'm happy to have a serious conversation about how we are going --” you know, he's not president of all the people. I mean, this guy, he's cold and he is partisan.