By Tom Allison
Rush kicked off today's show saying that GDP data is being manipulated and that the country is certainly headed towards economic collapse. He directed his listeners to the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which has fluctuated up and down all day.
Predictably, Limbaugh took reports of Osama bin Laden speaking out against climate change to claim that America's most wanted terrorist is now on “Obama's economic team” and that bin Laden and the Obama administration are giving each other advice. He continued, commenting that like Al Gore, bin Laden should get the Nobel Peace Prize and that he should welcome global warming because he lives in a cave.
Despite the Bush administration's failure to capture bin Laden, Rush criticized Obama for offering a “lame excuse” for not finding bin Laden for more than a year, since the administration apparently said that they hadn't confirmed that the most recent tape was indeed from bin Laden.
Limbaugh turned to debunked claims of global cooling, promoting a new paper about decreased water vapor in the stratosphere contributing to a slowing of global warming. Needless to say, Rush didn't read from the second paragraph of a Times article, which read: “Despite the decrease in water vapor, the study's authors said, the overall trend is still toward a warming climate, primarily caused by a buildup in emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases from human sources. Limbaugh also referred to the ”hoax" of East Anglia and Himalayan glaciers. During the show Limbaugh referred to NASA scientist James Hansen as an “insane lunatic.”
Limbaugh says Bush should get credit for recovery
After a break, Limbaugh speculated that Sen. Chuck Schumer felt his Senate seat might be in danger with a KSM trial in Manhattan, so he had Mayor Michael Bloomberg come out against it. Discussing the possibility of moving the trial, Limbaugh said, “In Detroit, even if some terrorists blew some things up, depending on where they did it, you wouldn't know.”
Limbaugh claimed that because Obama blames Bush for all the economic problems, then Bush should get all the credit for the growth in GDP.
Limbaugh then promoted a Donald Lambro column that predicted an American economic catastrophe in 2011.
After another commercial break, Limbaugh mocked the idea of Obama reaching out to Republicans, criticizing the President for not wanting the Republicans to put politics over policy. Limbaugh played audio of Obama discussing the GDP numbers and commented that the growth has “nothing to do with the stimulus” and concluded that Obama has diarrhea of the mouth.
Limbaugh concluded the first hour reading from a Saudi Aramco oil executive urging Obama to tone down the rhetoric on renewable energy. Fascinating.
Limbaugh blames all recent economic decline on Democrats
Limbaugh returned to Obama's events in Baltimore today, and again criticized Obama for not taking responsibility for unemployment. Calling Obama an ideologue, Limbaugh accused the President of only listening to economists who agree with him.
An hour and a half into the three-hour show, Limbaugh took his first caller on open-line Friday. Upon request, Limbaugh gave his prescription for the future success of the Republican Party, which included a purity test -- a document of “ten principles” for official Republicans to sign.
Rush's second caller said he was a Toyota dealer, and speculated that the company issued the recall on their cars just to avoid any meddling from the Obama administration.
Continuing his economic analysis, Limbaugh blamed the Democratic takeover of Congress to a decrease in GDP:
LIMBAUGH: If you look at the GDP, and the jobless charts -- and the unemployment charts did an amazing thing -- you see it trucking along here at 5, 4.7, 5.2, and then BAM! In 2007, it starts inching up; 2007 -- and by the time you get to the end of 2008, it's almost going straight up on this chart to now 10 percent. 2007 -- GDP -- at the same time, if you look at a chart of the gross domestic product -- economic growth -- you'll start to see it come down shortly after the start of 2007. That happens to coincide when the Democrats took control of Congress.
Rush was skeptical of Obama's comments that he wasn't a Bolshevik, saying that the Communist Party USA supports most of Obama's policies and endorsed him in the 2008 election. Segueing into a plug for Zicam, Rush claimed that some of the company's products were banned because Obama is “seeking to do damage to all my clients.” He made no mention of the warnings that it permanently damages your sense of smell.
Limbaugh informed us that he participated and won a contest among the Miss America Pageant judges last night, and performed the “New Jersey fist bump dance.”
Michael Timberlake and Mike Burns contributed to this edition of the Limbaugh Wire.
Highlights
LIMBAUGH: Oh goody, goody gumdrops! Wrapping up the week as the GDP numbers are being manipulated, showing a 5.7 percent growth in the last quarter of 2009, but the real money doesn't seem to be believing this. Dow Jones industrial average is down 10 points. It's been flirting between up 5 to 15, now it's down 10. Oh, NASDAQ is down 11. Somehow, I don't think people are buying that. The reason why, folks, is because most of the -- most of GDP reported growth is in inventories, and those are not a reliable thing.
They -- you can't stake a recovery, at least from what I'm reading on inventories because they can just as easily take a day or take a month off, as well. If there's no customers to buy what they're inventorying up then you're not going to keep inventorying. And there aren't going to be customers 'cause there isn't any employment growth so -- anyway, I think that's what the smart money knows. You've got record profits at Microsoft. You've got Apple with that I-tampon that they released that's going to be a big, popular thing and still stocks are not going through the roof and that's where the real money in the U.S. economy is going right now. It's the only place real money is going.
[...]
LIMBAUGH: I wonder how -- ladies and gentlemen, I wonder how former Vice President Al Gore felt today to awaken and find out that on his global warming team is none other than Osama bin Laden. Osama bin Laden, on his own network, Al Jazeera, deplores climate change. “Osama bin Laden, the Al Qaeda leader, has condemned the U.S. and other industrial economies, holding them responsible for the phenomenon of climate change.” I mean, we've gotta give -- well, yeah, Israel's in there, too. We have got to sign this guy up for a Nobel Peace Prize. He should be a joint recipient. I mean, he's got the same view on this that Al Gore has and the United Nations IPCC -- whatever the hell that group is -- interplanetary alien, whatever. I don't know. It's the fraud bunch.
Now you would think that bin Laden would be grateful for a warmer world because he lives in a cave. He lives in a freezing cave somewhere on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. But everyday -- folks, I'm telling you -- everyday -- this is so rich. This -- I love this -- it gets harder and harder to tell bin Laden's complaints from those of the average, run-of-the-middle leftist like Obama or Harry Reid or Nancy Pelosi or the entire Democrat Party. I mean, every time Obama releases -- Osama releases a tape, it's just Democrat talking points; or maybe they're getting their talking points from him.
“In an audio tape obtained by Al Jazeera” -- it was probably hand delivered -- “bin Laden criticized George Bush, the former U.S. president, for rejecting the Kyoto pact and condemned global corporations.” OK, Blame Bush -- check. “This is a message to the whole world about there -- those responsible for climate change and its repercussions -- whether intentionally or unintentionally -- and about the action we must take” -- we must take.
“Speaking about climate change” -- this is a guy who lives in the seventh century. “Speaking about climate change is not a matter of intellectual luxury -- the phenomenon is an actual fact.” OK, global warming settled science -- check. “In the new recording, bin Laden says 'all the industrial states' are to blame for climate change, 'yet the majority of those states have signed the Kyoto Protocol have agreed to curb the emission of harmful gases.' ”
“He continued: 'However, George Bush Junior., preceded by [the U.S.] Congress, dismissed the agreement to placate giant corporations. And they are' ” -- does this not sound like an -- this sounds like -- it sounds like -- this could easily be Russ Feingold, the senator from -- where's he from? -- Wisconsin. " 'They are also behind 'globalization and its tragic implications.' And whenever the perpetrators are found guilty, the heads of state rush to rescue them using public money." OK, blame the U.S. and greedy evil corporations -- check.
I mean, this is right off the Democrat Party playbook. Bin laden has become an environmentalist. Then he says: “In the new recording, bin Laden said: 'Noam Chomsky [the U.S. academic and political commentator] was correct when he compared U.S. policies to those of the Mafia.' ” OK, cites Noam Chomsky -- check. We don't -- the only thing -- why didn't he cite Saul Alinsky? I mean, more people probably know who Saul Alinsky is now than -- anyway. "' They are the true terrorists and therefore we should refrain from dealing in the U.S. dollar. We should try to get rid of this currency as early as possible. I am certain that such actions will have great repercussions and huge impact.' " So he calls America the true terrorists, wants to boycott against the U.S. dollar -- check -- right off the Democrat Party talking points.
“While continuing to attack America, bin Laden's comments mark a shift from his earlier, more regionally focused commentary. In his previous tape, bin Laden warned that there would be further attacks on the U.S. unless Obama took steps to resolve the Palestinian conflict.” Oh -- Palestinian conflict -- yeah, gotta forget that. That's passé because Obama said, “I can't fix it. That's too hard.” So, now, climate change is where it's at -- check.
[...]
LIMBAUGH: What I think Republicans are working on is a new, revised Contract with America. And you could certainly -- you know, a 10-point plan of objectives, and it'd be a contract; they'd all sign it. And they -- you could put that in that -- the earmark claim in that. I don't think anybody would oppose it. Republicans have made great hay in opposing it and trying to stop it, but it's such an ingrained thing that Congress does.
[...]
LIMBAUGH: You know, I like Mike Allen at the Politico. I really do. But I'm noticing a trend here. Whenever the White House wants to get a new policy, a talking point, or whatever out, it seems it first shows up at the Politico. Low and behold, right around 9 o'clock this morning: “White House: GOP accountability coming.” The White House -- this is the Politico Playbook; it's Mike Allen -- “The White House plans to step up efforts to hold Republicans accountable for cooperation.” Dan Pfeiffer, the communications director: “There are 59 Democrat Senators now. They're at 41, the Republicans; they have a responsibility to govern. In Year 1, they sat on the sidelines and were willing to leave governing in this challenging time to us. They have a responsibility now to partner with the president, to try to get things done for the American people. With 59 senators, it is mathematically impossible for Democrats to do everything on their own.”
So this is the new strategery: It's the Republicans' fault now. It's all the Republicans' fault. Mean Republicans, they're to blame. They have to join us and govern.
They're not going to. Not with the agenda that you've put forth.
[...]
LIMBAUGH: If you look at the GDP, and the jobless charts -- and the unemployment charts did an amazing thing -- you see it trucking along here at 5, 4.7, 5.2, and then BAM! In 2007, it starts inching up; 2007 -- and by the time you get to the end of 2008, it's almost going straight up on this chart to now 10 percent. 2007 -- GDP -- at the same time, if you look at a chart of the gross domestic product -- economic growth -- you'll start to see it come down shortly after the start of 2007. That happens to coincide when the Democrats took control of Congress.
See, people who invest real money know when to hold onto it; and the Democrats taking over Congress, they're in charge of all spending. They control the economy at that point. And then Obama's election in November of 2008, and they'd heard the campaign, they knew all of this government growth and redistribution and tax increases were coming, and they started making plans to deal with it by downsizing their labor force. And it's only continued as Obama then came in and implemented the policies that everybody predicted that he would implement.