By Zachary Pleat

Rush positively reviews his Fox News interview

Rush began today by thanking his audience for pumping up the ratings of the Miss America pageant last weekend. He then referenced his interview with Fox News' Gretchen Carlson that aired this morning. Later in the show, Rush played clips of the Fox News interview and tried to explain some of his comments -- which he called “bombs” -- saying that he's “just being consistent” after his comment last year that he hopes President Obama fails.

Rush then delved into the state of the global economy -- after blaming it on President Obama, of course -- by reading a story about a 19 year-old in New Zealand who auctioned off her virginity. Rush used the story to bash Democratic politicians:

LIMBAUGH: I don't know if Clinton made a bid or not. I think Clinton would want a comp. I don't actually think Clinton would pay. I mean his -- no, no, no, even if it was to help some young lady go to college. This is a good cause. The cops said that she didn't break any laws, but they did say it might be risky for her to follow through on the deal. But they -- she didn't break any laws. The anonymous 19 year old -- Spitzer would pay. Client number 9 would pay. There's no question -- I don't know that he knew about this though.

He then delved into a story about a former morgue worker in Ohio sentenced for abusing corpses. Limbaugh offered a reason to mention this while talking about the economy:

LIMBAUGH: You might be saying what -- what does this have to do with the Obama economy? Is it not clear, my friends? You don't have to take a corpse out to dinner. You don't have to buy a corpse a drink or a bottle of wine. You don't have to take the corpse anywhere in the car so you don't spend any fuel. They have -- you have a pervert here who chooses the cheapest way he can go all because of the Obama economy.

Rush next complained about Obama's latest comment on Las Vegas, suggesting that the president doesn't like Vegas because “maybe he got rolled by a hooker there,” or maybe just wants to get rid of Sen. Harry Reid.

Referring to CBS' Katie Couric as an “anchorbabe”, Rush then mentioned disagreements between her and CBS over her contract. He later commented that CBS should not bother operating a Moscow bureau anyway, declaring it “redundant”, and saying CBS should be able to do the same thing from New York that it does in Moscow.

Next, Rush joined Fox News in playing a new National Republican Senatorial Committee ad attacking Illinois Democratic candidate Alexi Giannoulias.

After the first half-hour break, Rush read a story about golfer Tom Watson encouraging Tiger Woods to “clean up his act.” He then read from at length an article detailing the rise of unemployment in metropolitan areas of the country. Limbaugh declared that “Obama voters” live in metropolitan areas. Again referring to just about any sort of legislation that can be used to promote job creation as a “slush fund”, Rush then mentioned Obama's proposal to use $30 billion from TARP to offer small businesses loans, then moved onto yet another article, this time on Social Security. Several times, Rush ranted that “we don't have money”, and pontificated that the country wouldn't have any money again during his lifetime at the very least.

Rush closed out the hour by taking a call from a woman who was upset that public school in Indianapolis may start the school day later on the day after the Super Bowl (she noted that there were problems with bus drivers not showing up on time when the Colts won in 2007). Rush quipped that “In truth, the fewer hours kids spend in a public school the better off they are,” and later offered this commentary:

LIMBAUGH: You know, it's funny how “school bus” Nagin in New Orleans did not suggest this for the New Orleans bus drivers. I mean, he learned a big lesson there back in Katrina: get the buses out of there! So no time off being late in New Orleans, at least as of now.

Rush “demonstrates the power of Sarah Palin”

Saying that many people in the administration are apologizing this week, Rush began his second hour by commenting on Rahm Emanuel's apology for his use of the word “retarded.” Limbaugh mentioned that Sarah Palin demanded that Emanuel be fired. Perhaps not wanting Emanuel to hog the spotlight for offending people, Rush offered some offensive comments of his own:

LIMBAUGH: Our political correct society is acting like some giant insult's taken place by calling a bunch of people who are retards, retards. I mean these people -- these liberal activists are kooks. They are looney-toons.

Now I'm not going to apologize for it, I'm just quoting Emanuel. It's in the news. I think their big news is that he's out there calling Obama's number one supporters “effing retards.” So now there's gonna be a meeting -- there's gonna be a retard summit at the White House.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: If you want to look at how this is broken down, Emanuel compares Democrat activists to retarded people, then apologizes to retarded people, not to the Democrats. Normally if you call somebody a retard, you apologize to them for calling them a retard. But he has apologized to the retarded people for daring to lump them with Democrats. It's hilarious.

Rush proceeded to repeat the phrase “retard summit” and to call people “effing retards” and “retards” several more times during this segment. He later said that his focus on Emanuel's comments “demonstrates the power of Sarah Palin.”

Later, while mentioning that Obama is “backing off” his comments about Las Vegas, Rush decided to emphasize that “gambling is forbidden in the Quran.”

Coming back from a break, Rush started talking about terrorism again and read much of a piece by Glenn Greenwald. Limbaugh said that “these retards on the left, as Rahm Emanuel would say it” are hypocrites. Rush went on to read an article about Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair's testimony today, contrasting it with a September 2009 New York Times piece by Scott Shane.

After another break, Rush engaged with a caller on the economy, budget, and unemployment, saying that he thinks “Obama is happy” that unemployment is so high, and stating that the 2011 budget is “the destruction of this country as we have known it.”

Rush knows pejorative comments

For the start of his third hour today, Rush read an AP story about Senator-elect Scott Brown demanding that his election be certified by late tomorrow morning. Earlier, Rush had said that it may be illegal for sitting Massachusetts Sen. Paul Kirk to be casting votes now. He then highlighted a poll by Public Policy Polling and played a clip of Republican Sen. Judd Gregg berating Office of Management and Budget director Peter Orszag for wanting to use repaid TARP money to help small businesses.

Later, Rush spoke with a caller who said her child is developmentally disabled and challenged Rush on his repeated use of the word “retard” today. After a few minutes of conversation, Rush attempted to defend himself:

LIMBAUGH: Well, maybe I didn't express it right, but the point is I just found it funny that while Rahm Emanuel is -- he compared -- the first thing he did was compared liberal activists to retarded people and then apologized to the retarded people for doing that as though it's an insult to be called a Democrat.

[...]

LIMBAUGH: You've gotta cut me some slack -- you got -- you've got -- I've been here 20-plus years. You've got to know that I don't -- that I know that that's a pejorative comment. It's -- the reason I kept repeating it is to never let people forget that it was Rahm Emanuel who said it.

After another break, Rush read a story about the IRS seeking 60 shotguns for its Criminal Investigation Unit, commenting that eventually “they will bring the military in to do this.”

He then took another caller who discussed public schools, and Rush stated that public schools do indeed “indoctrinate” students in “liberal thought.” He then read his morning update from yesterday.

Moving on, Rush read much of a Canadian National Post article headlined, “Wheels fall off global-warming hysteria.” He stated, “All these so-called scientists are nothing more than liberal activists first -- even if they do have a science education.”

Mike Burns and Michael Timberlake contributed to this edition of the Limbaugh Wire.