Rush Limbaugh did not lose the election
posted at 2:00 pm on November 20, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
Share on Facebook | regular view
Two editorials in the past two days have attempted to shift blame for two successive election losses onto someone who has never run for public office. Both Mort Kondracke and Karen Harper blame Rush and other conservative talk-show hosts for the GOP’s descent into the minority in Washington DC. Neither, though, explain how a conservative talk-show host whose policy positions got largely ignored over the last eight years cost Republican candidates votes.
Kondracke:
How can the Republican Party rebound? The first step would be to quit letting Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham set its agenda. …
Step One is to fire Rush Limbaugh and his ilk as the intellectual bosses of the GOP. They shouldn’t be muzzled, as some liberals want to do by reviving the “fairness doctrine” in broadcasting, just ignored more frequently.
In recent years, Republicans have let right-wing talk show hosts whip the GOP base into frenzies — over immigration, brain-damage victim Terry Schiavo and same-sex marriage — that have branded the party as troglodyte.
Huh? Did Rush or any of the other people Kondracke mentions support an explosion of pork-barrel spending? As far as I know, Rush never uttered the phrase “compassionate conservatism” without irony or contempt. Rush, Laura, Sean, and the rest of the talk-show circuit certainly didn’t back the biggest expansion of discretionary spending by the federal government in decades. Other than the war and judicial nominations, Kondracke would be hard-pressed to identify which parts of the Republican agenda as pursued by GOP officeholders over the last decade belonged to Rush.
Harper falls into the same trap, only more insultingly:
However, Governor Jindal and other moderates must contend with Rush Limbaugh and others like him. Limbaugh, the Jerry Springer of radio, continues to encourage his listeners to support the right wing conservative wing of the Republican party as he trashes anyone who disagrees with him and that includes moderate centrist Republicans.
Irony spill on Aisle 1! Harper complains about Rush “trashing” people with whom he disagrees at the same time as she calls him the Jerry Springer of talk radio. Well, thanks for the tolerance lesson, Karen! We’ll put that right up there with Kathleen Parker’s “Oogedy Boogedy” description of Christians.
And how exactly is Rush equivalent to Jerry Springer? Does he host fistfights between mutants over politics? No. Rush gives his opinion on politics, avoiding the incessant talking-head shouting matches we see much more often on cable television.
You know, it’s odd; when Republicans won elections, no one seemed to mind Rush and his energy to bring conservatives to the table. When Republicans stopped being conservatives, or at least stopped acting like conservatives and more like the kind of Democrat Lite that Kondracke and Harper prefer, they stopped winning elections — and started blaming Rush Limbaugh for it. Kondracke wants Republican politicians to ignore Rush, Laura, and Sean, but they’ve been doing that since 2001, and that’s not Rush’s fault.
The GOP will go nowhere if it engages in scapegoating talk radio for the next couple of years. Republicans have lost two successive elections because American voters will choose Democrats when given a choice between an authentic Democrat and a fake Democrat. We’re not going to win elections by making Republicans more like Democrats. We will win elections when Republicans do the following:
- Find a First Principles approach that will unite the conservative coalitions, as Reagan did in 1980
- Have a zero-tolerance policy for corruption
- Stop supporting pork-barrel spending
- Take concrete steps to shrink the federal government
- Take responsibility for their own actions and the consequences for them instead of scapegoating talk radio
Note to Kondracke and Harper: Rush doesn’t work for the Republican Party. The Republican Party doesn’t follow Rush’s policy agenda, and hasn’t since George Bush came to office. The notion that the main problem with the GOP is Rush Limbaugh is profoundly foolish, so much so that only Beltway insiders could possibly reach that conclusion.
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Blowback
Note from Hot Air management: This section is for comments from Hot Air's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that Hot Air management agrees with or otherwise endorses any particular comment just because we let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with our terms of use may lose their posting privilege.
Trackbacks/Pings
Trackback URL
Comments
Comment pages: « Previous 1 2 3 Next »
Forgive me, but Frankenstupid isn’t even the shadow of a ghost of Limbaugh.
But point taken.
hillbillyjim on November 20, 2008 at 3:19 PM
Isn’t Kondrake a democrat?
Thanks for the advice, craphound, now go f’ yourself.
HornetSting on November 20, 2008 at 3:21 PM
Using the “Liberal Fact Inventing Strategy”: If you repeat something enough times, whether it’s true or not, people will eventually believe it. I hope it’s a small percentage. If it’s not, the battle to win back this nation is going to be much more difficult.
AubieJon on November 20, 2008 at 3:21 PM
hillbillyjim on November 20, 2008 at 3:19 PM
Yeah, I know. But he was presented as the heavy hitter of Airhead America. That just shows how pitiful they are.
By, the way, Benny, if Rush is just a comedian, he sure is a rich and influential one.
Buy a vowel. Get a Clue.
kingsjester on November 20, 2008 at 3:23 PM
Mort, you ignorant slut!
omnipotent on November 20, 2008 at 3:24 PM
You mean those that march in the streets, waving the rainbow flag and eat their own feces. That rest of us, benny?
HornetSting on November 20, 2008 at 3:24 PM
http://veepwatch.voluntarytrade.org/vp/?p=53
Brains on November 20, 2008 at 3:27 PM
“You’re kidding, right? Limbaugh is equal parts pundit, social commentator, and entertainer. That’s it, what and who he is. Not denigrating the man, but to call him ‘one of the 2 or 3 most important intellects alive today’ is just dittohead hyperbole.
troyriser_gopftw ”
Maybe you should listen to Rush.
He is a consistent, clear, conservative thinker who is invariably correct. He is also funny, clever and creative.
Academics are parrots of the socialist mantra. All but a tiny handful of politicians are salespeople looking for a paycheck, most are deeply dishonest.
Rush is smarter than all of them, by far.
notagool on November 20, 2008 at 3:28 PM
It is a sign of the times that our beloved trolls have, since the election, shown themselves to be narrow-minded, bigoted, cocksure, crowing, bleating, prancing, Obama-fellating fools.
It would be common sense to wait until The One has actually achieved something, anything actually, before you start your silly rooster-necking.
But go ahead, have at it.
Time will tell.
hillbillyjim on November 20, 2008 at 3:33 PM
Kondrake, or ‘Stuttering Mort’ as he is know in my house, is another of the ‘inside the beltway elites’ that think the rest of us proles just aren’t sophisticated enough to understand what they mean.
If Britt didn’t intervene and cut this fool off, almost every time he is on, the program would invariably never get out of their ‘Panel Segment’. I have never heard this idiot make a clear, concise, statement.
DoctorDentons on November 20, 2008 at 3:34 PM
Thanks, Ed. That needed to be said.
Why not blame Rush for global warming too?
I’d expect as
muchlittle from Harper, but it’s disappointing when Mort falls into one of his Rush bashing rants. Usually he does better.petefrt on November 20, 2008 at 3:34 PM
THE REPULICANS GOT NO CORE IF NOT FOR LIFE AND GROWTH,THERE JUST A BUNCH OF DOUBLE A PLAYERS NOW. CANT CATCH ,CANT HIT BUT THE ROOKIES LOOKS PROMISING———————————————-GO BOBBY
rico101 on November 20, 2008 at 3:35 PM
I believe the exact percentage is 53. Man your battle stations.
FuriousAmerican on November 20, 2008 at 3:37 PM
Thanks.
AubieJon on November 20, 2008 at 3:46 PM
No, the only “comedian” here is you.
Ever seen the PEW survey from a couple of years ago showing that Limbaugh’s listeners are more news-savvy than those who listen to NPR?
BTW, McCain didn’t lose the election because of Rush; he lost it because O’bama got 70 percent of the high school dropout vote while he only got 30%.
Del Dolemonte on November 20, 2008 at 3:47 PM
I’m hoping/believing that a large chunk of that 53% were just the sheep who wouldn’t follow McCain because they couldn’t tell that he stood for anything. Conservatives can communicate what they stand for, but most of that was iffy when it came to what McCain stood for.
Obama made them believe he stood for something. I just hope they’re watching him over the next 4 years.
AubieJon on November 20, 2008 at 3:49 PM
I feel sorry for Mort. Ever since his wife died a few years back he really has become looney-tunes.
gatorgirl on November 20, 2008 at 3:55 PM
Spot on, Ed.
It’s highly doubtful that Karen Harper (whoever she is!) even listens to Rush. I’m guessing she gets her talking points on him from Media Matters or perhaps the Kathleen Parker “intelligentsia” circuit. Of course it’s also possible she’s never watched Jerry Springer either.
As for Kondracke, sometimes I think Juan Williams has more of a clue than he does.
Buy Danish on November 20, 2008 at 4:02 PM
notagool wrote, in response to my qualified criticism of Rush Limbaugh, ‘Maybe you should listen to Rush.’
I have listened to Rush Limbaugh, several times over many years. Sometimes I agree, sometimes I don’t. While I agree Limbaugh’s analytical skills are first-rate and his ability to connect with his audience approaches genius, I don’t believe he is the titan of our time you and others claim him to be. You seem evidently sincere. Okay. Believe in Limbaugh’s greatness all you like. I can’t put aside that draft-dodging nonsense he played during the Vietnam era. I mean, come on, pulling a medical deferment with a pilonidal cyst? I’ve got no use for Rush Limbaugh. The man is yellow.
troyriser_gopftw on November 20, 2008 at 4:03 PM
Gatorgirl: Not good form on Kondracke. That man’s been through more with his wife than I can imagine having to deal with.
And who said he was a Republican just because he’s on Fox News? I don’t think he is.
L.N. Smithee on November 20, 2008 at 4:04 PM
…so, the country club set has had the Republican which most resembles them, ideologically anyway, for the last eight years, and has been shellacked in elections….
…someone who even looks like Rush, the Divine Sarah, shows up on the scene, and folks are already talking about putting her at the head of the line for 2012…hmmmm….
…base…I’m thinking base here….
…we’ve got an actual Democrat now…let’s let Ms. Harper and the washed-out, sold-out Mr. Kondrake extend their pinkies as they comment on Mr. Obama’s backswing…and spend the next two years getting actual conservatives ready for the congressionals…and cast about for actual conservatives to right the wrongs the socialists will do us over the next four years…seems simple to me….
…simple…Kondrake…Harper…Brooks…Will…all the other fossils…irrelevant…simple….
Puritan1648 on November 20, 2008 at 4:17 PM
Hey Mort! Stop being such a mort.
He looks like yet another blatherskate trying to make himself friends with the liberals in the media by attacking a conservative success. Silly mort!
DannoJyd on November 20, 2008 at 4:25 PM
http://veepwatch.voluntarytrade.org/vp/?p=53
Illinidiva on November 20, 2008 at 4:25 PM
Hmmm…that’s not stopped those on the right from their criticisms, funnily enough. I mean, “The One”? Why not, like, wait until….well, you get it.
Grow Fins on November 20, 2008 at 4:26 PM
Exactly why I like listening to him, no whiney, talking point spewing lefty interrupting every 2 seconds. And as notagool said above, he backs up everything he says with good old fashioned facts. He is refreshing to listen to.
4shoes on November 20, 2008 at 4:27 PM
You can come out of your cocoon now, Oprah. The one was elected. You and the other 52 million can take off the blinders and LEARN what the rest of us already know.
HornetSting on November 20, 2008 at 4:31 PM
What does Rush say?
Grow Fins on November 20, 2008 at 4:36 PM
Considering the fact that Rush NEVER endorsed McCain because he considered it “the thing that would sink McCain more than anything else” (and he said it REPEATEDLY), I wonder why anyone ever said that Rush lost the election.
Not to mention that he opposed the Medicare prescription drug plan.
And the amnesty bill.
And the bailout package(s).
And that he has said in his program, “Once an entitlement, always an entitlement.”
He also saw no problem with the Dubai Port Operations deal, for the same reasons that people like my husband (in the International Maritime industry) stated.
And, of course, he has savaged the MSM for its abominable treatment of Sarah Palin and her family.
newton on November 20, 2008 at 4:38 PM
Rush says a lot of things.
HornetSting on November 20, 2008 at 4:39 PM
There was one candidate this year that took that advice…..
John McCain.
How’d he do?
dirtseller on November 20, 2008 at 4:42 PM
I’m ready to have a stroke people. I work in Academia and just got through talking to an adjunct professor about the economy, etc. We went round and round very politely and we got to talking about the Big 3 bailout, etc. and he told me Unions are very necessary, blah, blah, blah. I said “Well then tell me how Honda in Ohio and Indiana do it without unions?” Oh, he said, “they narrowly missed going Union the last time they took a vote.” I have no idea if that’s true or not, but I then said, “Well how do we do it here? Right here where we work.” He said, “It’s because we’re educated. People that work at non-union places are usually uneducated.” My mouth flew open. That pi$$ed me off. I said, “Look, my husband has NEVER worked at a union shop in his life and he has never needed a union to protect him.” In fact, my husband works in a shop that laid off 45 people today. My husband’s only been there for a little over a year and they let go two other guys from the same dept that had been there longer. One made more than my husband, one less. They let the other guys go because of their work habits, absenteeism, etc. My husband has never missed a day of work unless it was a vacation day. Geez, I’m pi$$ed. One thing though, I did get to tell that guy that the DEMS are all about the American Dream until one makes too much and then they’re the Devil.
I’m mad. Sorry for the rant.
Oink on November 20, 2008 at 4:43 PM
Just who are these people urging a leftward tilt? Nobody lefties like Harper and establishment phonies like Kondrake. Deep six their lousey advice.
federale86 on November 20, 2008 at 4:46 PM
Hacks looking to milk a big name. puke.
marklmail on November 20, 2008 at 4:46 PM
I can some up why Kondracke and Harper are wrong in two words. Harriet Myers.
hawksruleva on November 20, 2008 at 4:47 PM
derrrr- SUM up, even.
hawksruleva on November 20, 2008 at 4:47 PM
And probably has more of an audience in a day than the comedians at MSNBC enjoy in a month. That is an endless source of entertainment to us.
ddrintn on November 20, 2008 at 4:48 PM
Well, of course, Mr. Kondracke is one of the “Beltway Boys”.
Blaise on November 20, 2008 at 4:54 PM
Which is why they want to shut him down?
Which is why they mention him so much?
Which is why he is hated by the left?
Which is why you are whistling through the graveyard…the funny part is you pretending he isn’t influential.
right2bright on November 20, 2008 at 4:55 PM
My criticisms are founded in facts or the lack thereof. “The One”, as you well know, is an acknowledgment of the fact that Obama was heralded as so much more than the facts warrant.
So, no, I don’t get it.
Don’t play stupid. Your transparency is very illuminating.
hillbillyjim on November 20, 2008 at 4:58 PM
When a truly conservative candidate runs with a fiscally conservative and moderate to conservative social message and gets buried in the general election then I will concede the point- until then no dice.
Sadly it may not happen since the democrats will be in the process of destroying the economy so the GOP will benefit in 2010 with the same class clowns and think they were right all along and run another moderate in 12′.
jjshaka on November 20, 2008 at 5:09 PM
I find it odd that the same segment of folks who accuse Obama supporters of “drinking the Kool-Aid” say these kinds of things about Rush Limbaugh with a straight face.
Limbaugh is a media personality. Do you think the person you hear on the radio is the “real” Rush Limbaugh? That he speaks and acts like that all the time? Dudel, get it together. Rush Limbaugh consistently makes things up, lies, and then, amazingly, gets really pissed off when he’s called on it. He also knows EXACTLY what he’s doing and is a notorious flip flopper.
When people tried to blame economic collapse on Bush, Rush claimed:
1. There is no economic collapes
2. Presidents don’t make or break the economy
3. Tax cuts have helped the economy.
He would often say 2 and 3 in the SAME SHOW. And unless you’re paying attention you’re none the wiser. Worse, now a days he claims we’re in an Obama recession. So the President doesn’t effect the economy but the President-elect does? Whatever.
Look I applaud Rush’s success. He’s done a great job cultivating a certain kind of audience. But there’s no possible way you can say that he’s anything but a hack who could never run for office himself.
DeathToMediaHacks on November 20, 2008 at 5:17 PM
That’s the smartest thing I have read this week.
We win 2012 by not running a 70 year old RINO.
faraway on November 20, 2008 at 5:20 PM
Which also doesn’t explain the bigger question: if their policy positions were largely ignored, why then are they being targeted by the Fairness Doctrine?
RMCS_USN on November 20, 2008 at 5:24 PM
Ed, you forgot to mention the most important item of all – raising enough $$$ to purchase all MSM sources. Until someone other than 60’s yuppies owns and controls the MSM, we don’t stand a chance. Zogby got it right, even without polling McCain voters.
RMCS_USN on November 20, 2008 at 5:29 PM
Rush could have been a little more enthusiastic after McCain won the nomination, I was listening to him leading up to the election and he kept going on about “dragging McCain across the finish line”. But McCain losing certainly was not his/Laura/Hannity’s fault. McCain was too erratic towards the end, sticking his irons into too many fires.
Hog Wild on November 20, 2008 at 5:31 PM
This is the battle were going to have over the next year. Are we gonna go with our principles or the RINO’s? If we choose RINO’s, we better like the minority because we’ll be staying there. Rush is right and the beloved gutless moderates are wrong. They just lost right in front of the nation.
Big Orange on November 20, 2008 at 5:33 PM
Here’s my reaction to Mort…
Hey Mort, suck it.
I know, crass. But what can I say that hasn’t been said already in defense of Rush. He’s been successful longer than most of the pundits, and they wish they had that many folks’ ears everyday.
Bitter much? I’ll stick with Rush, thanks.
tickleddragon on November 20, 2008 at 5:52 PM
Eh, I would say at bare minimum “Operation Chaos” did more to help Obama than hurt him. The extended primaries did wonders for Democratic registration drives and it also allowed Obama to air all the dirty laundry months before it actually mattered. Ayers and Wright, they were all dealt with in the first half of the year.
Typhonsentra on November 20, 2008 at 6:03 PM
Rush is more right when he is wrong (which he sometimes is) that the left is when they accidentally get soemthing right.
If we get a true conservative to run in 2012 , with Rush working to keep the masses informed and upbeat it’ll be what we have wanted………we’re sick of RINOs.
John The Baptist on November 20, 2008 at 6:06 PM
I’m sorry- can’t even read the other comments before I first, levitate and then explode. As many of the regulars know, one of my favorite punching bags is Mort, “the weasel” Kondracke. For him to even speak of my beloved Rush Limbaugh is more than I can tolerate. This is going to require an all out assault upon FOX and their hideous “all stars”. Just last night I (stupidly) had Special Report on and that idiot was spouting off about something that made me roll my eyes, then Nina, “Mary Tyler Moore called and she wants her hairdo back” Easton came on to add her two cents about how the world was going to give Obama a two year honeymoon on the economy, and then my head exploded. I despise these freaks who somehow think they need to educate Republicans on how to win. They’re DEMOCRATS- why would they even be asked the question?! I’m so bummed that there isn’t one decent news outlet available on TV.
That’s all. Rant finished.
anniekc on November 20, 2008 at 6:09 PM
McCain lost because of McCain
Just Google
and you will see why McCain never attacked Obama on anything, even though his own senior advisor said he would definitely win if he used Wright.
igoramus08 on November 20, 2008 at 6:15 PM
Presidents can’t pass tax cuts or tax incresases. That takes both the President and Congress together. And then that fiscal impact only affects the economy with a certain time lag.
Bye.
silverfox on November 20, 2008 at 6:16 PM
The GOP-Lite gang is merely looking for scapegoats to blame for their failed Moderate Gop experiments in governing, with Rush simply being their most obvious target since he has been, along with now sadly gone Bill Buckley, the most powerful Conservative voice we’ve had for a generation.
The MSM and Prog/Libs targeted Limbaugh for utter destruction this past election, and failing to do so with their quite obvious and speciously silly tactics, I’m sure they’re going to ramp up their efforts now that they have Kondrake and even McCain beginning to pile on.
There’s gonna be a nasty battle for power now between the GOP-Lite crowd trying to disenfranchise the true Conservative base of the party, However, the last two failed elections, you would think, would give them a clue in that most of us Center/Right’ers and true Conservatives are dismayed that they are emulating the Dems way too much in policy and strategical actions.
Lest anyone think that most seemingly Conservative Bloggers are outside of this effort to (ahem) “modernize” the GOP Brand, allow me to remind people what Hugh Hewitt himself blogged on November 8, 2006, in which he stated, in the aftermath of the devastating GOP midterm losses:
“If the GOP adopts and refines the tactics the Democrats have used for the past four years all will be well two years hence, and perhaps even better than well.”
That townhall.com archived entry can be found at:
http://tinyurl.com/5bptqb
Thanks, Hugh, for proving that adopting Prog/Lib/Dem tactics destroys the GOP image and foundation utterly, leading to yet worse failure.
We, those who believe in less government, less freebees and bailouts that those who are truly productive end up paying for, and the Free Market economic systems, now must get to work, along with Rush, Sean, Mark, Ed, Michelle, Allahpundit and so many others, to rebuild what Kondrake, McCain, Hewitt, et al, have all but destroyed with their failed pseudo-compassionate conservative social and government experiments. We did it before, and by George, we can do it again!
Thanks Ed, and All here at Hot Air, for being a much needed Command Post in these efforts, and for being the voives of reason in a world gone MAD!
KendraWilder on November 20, 2008 at 6:17 PM
2004 disproved this.
Tacitus_SGL on November 20, 2008 at 6:20 PM
Kondracke’s being silly here and who’s the other person again and why should I care?
Look, this happens every time Republicans lose an election. In 1992, it was the “hard right” convention; it’s just more of the same this time.
The notion that “religious conservatives” led to this defeat is foolishness.
The sitting president is ours and he’s very unpopular – an unpopularity which has little to nothing to do with religion in the public square.
Last time Republicans controlled Congress, they demonstrated how inept they were – spending out of control, enacting Democrat-lite programs, refusing to police corruption (especially amongst their own), refusing to act to get judges approved …. on issue after issue, neither Congressional Republicans nor the President proved willing to support policies which conservatives deemed important.
Schiavo was a side show.
Can you say Congress looked foolish? Sure.
Now, with a straight face, can you say “but for Schiavo, Republicans would’ve done better?”
Stop it – you’re not hiding that snicker.
For the entirety of W.’s administration, the Democrats have pursued a strategy of demonization (trying to delegitimize the Administration) and obstruction (to advance the argument that the Administration – and Republicans – were incompetent to govern).
They had help – W. didn’t pay attention to staffing issues, with the result that incompetents were given jobs; he didn’t insist on accountability, which means incompetents kept their jobs; he didn’t insist on discipline, with the result that insubordination ran rampant in the bureaucracy; he didn’t protect the public purse, refusing for so long to veto anything – no matter how many billions over his “this much and no more” number the bill came in at; and he refused to engage in the public conversation required to defend his policies.
He abandoned the field. His opponents were allowed to define him. He and his party have paid the price.
Beyond this being a tough year no matter what, McCain had a shot – and then he bumbled it.
McCain’s self-regard for his own integrity was a problem. First, he had no discernible public platform other than he was a “maverick” – he wanted voters to think he’d do the “right thing”, but he wouldn’t tell them what he thought the “right thing” was. His advisers couldn’t figure out the positive case for John McCain’s election was; they had nothing to “sell”, so all they had left was trying to convince the voters not to “buy” the other guy.
He botched it with Palin – not in selecting her, though it did undercut his “experience” talking point some (if it’s so important, why pick someone who’d need some seasoning to be ready?), but in not anticipating the onslaught she’d face from the media.
I can’t understand why, but McCain’s campaign underestimated exactly how “in the tank” the media was for Obama. Complaining about bias isn’t a policy or response – you have to have a strategy that gets you past them. McCain had nothing. Similar to W’s refusal to defend himself, the McCain camp’s hesitancy with Palin let the media set the narrative. Once that idea was planted in voters mind, few of them were going to take the time or make the effort to reevaluate their initial impression.
What we see in this is how singular McCain’s sense of honor is – Palin was his VP, he made the decision to tap her for the nomination, yet we get this tepid response to the slanders leaked against her by “McCain people” post election?
One suspects McCain would react more strenuously at insubordination directed at him ….
The loss in 2008 has many fathers: unpopular incumbent of our party; unpopular policies (in many cases because Republicans, beginning with the incumbent, wouldn’t defend those policies); flawed nominee; flawed campaign; press acting as campaign operatives for the opposition; good campaign by the opponent.
Blaming Limbaugh, etc. is score-settling, not learned analysis.
BD57 on November 20, 2008 at 6:22 PM
I have no comment until Rush tells me what to think. That’s just the way I roll. ;-)
kahall on November 20, 2008 at 6:36 PM
Death to Media Hacks wrote:
Read your history: This is the first time the DJIA sank like a stone the morning after election day (As the liberals and talking heads were in breathy afterglow, the market closed 5.5% down, an all-time record).
The reason why Obama matters more than President-elects previous is because 1) His stated intention is to “fundamentally transform” the country and 2) the people who move the money around know that none of his stated policies are going to alleviate the instability. He just yesterday suggested — after making noises that he was more a fiscal conservative than McCain — that he’s not averse to more deficit spending. He must have asked himself, “WWWD? (What Would W Do?)”
As the Federal government is inching closer towards soak-the-rich collectivism, capitalists are holding on to their money. And they will until they see proof Baracko Marx won’t be what he appears to be.
L.N. Smithee on November 20, 2008 at 6:36 PM
They both can kiss my….. Rush has more credibility in his little finger than both of these idiots have in their whole bodies!!!!
build the wall on November 20, 2008 at 6:40 PM
rush didn’t lose anything … the GOP owes it’s downfall to the bible thumpers who have taken over the far right of the party.
Monkei on November 20, 2008 at 6:46 PM
Now you’ve gone and injected facts into the discussion. Whatever were you thinking?
:-)
hillbillyjim on November 20, 2008 at 6:49 PM
Interesting. Just last night I was watching Brit’s show and I was thinking it was time for a new panel. Hmmmm.
EconomicNeocon on November 20, 2008 at 6:50 PM
With all the crap that The Big O’s been involved in and the TRASH he associates with, you’re ragging on Limbaugh because of something during Viet Nam?
Leave us alone.
Oink on November 20, 2008 at 6:51 PM
First of all, Mort Kondracke is a Democrat who, after his wife Millie died, married a Republican which apparently makes him an expert.
Secondly, did any of you actually read Mort’s op ed which suggests we follow, say, Deval Patrick’s lead on education? Like this:
Under the proposal, states would take over schools from local boards, teachers would form corporations to run schools on contract and hire principals, salaries would go up significantly to attract first-rate teachers and standards would be set to international norms.
Most students would graduate after 10th grade and go on to upgraded trade or tech schools, while others stayed and took college-level courses. And money saved would also fund preschool for needy kids.
I just love these people who make plans to ruin the lives of our children, while they themselves either don’t have any or send them to private school where they are exempt from their own rules.
Buy Danish on November 20, 2008 at 6:52 PM
What a concept! Usually, people learn this one by age 6. I guess we need to send the wishy-washy “conservatives” back to primary school.
m064404 on November 20, 2008 at 7:00 PM
Kondrake is a wanker. I don’t even know who the other one is.
CantCureStupid on November 20, 2008 at 7:05 PM
That’s a good one! But not in the way you meant.
You sure can’t win elections without the base.
Do you actually read what you
spewwrite?tom on November 20, 2008 at 7:13 PM
You write what I think too.
I can tell you watch the Special Report Panel, as do I, because you start your commentary with… “Look” :)
petefrt on November 20, 2008 at 7:19 PM
Kondracke is just being a nawney-face. I remember how upset he was when McCain chose Sarah Palin. Talk about panties in a bunch. Rush is a conservative first. RINOs have no place in his scope of vision. McCain was a Democrat-light and the electorate, seeing that they didn’t have much of a choice, voted Obama because he had the juicier perks. The Republicans have only started losing offices en masse since abandoning conservative principles in their quest for power.
http://www.ArmchairEnergist.com
ArmchairEnergist on November 20, 2008 at 7:25 PM
nope
joey24007 on November 20, 2008 at 7:25 PM
I think it was Michelle M (or was it Fox) that recently linked to a story that Rush’s audience is significantly more knowledgeable than any other TV or radio audience. Compare that with the recent poll that showed Obama supporters were completely ignorant! We need Rush! As his parody says, “Thank God Rush is on the air!” If you listen to him regularly, you find that his “arrogance” is his schtick. (He is an entertainer as well as a political commentator.) What I love about listening to him is that he really is right 90+% of the time. And he is often quite gracious with callers who disagree with him. I $upport Rush because I finally found someone who expresses my views about the country and the issues and who helps keep me sane after watching the libs feed on the ignorance fostered by the Drive By Media.
A recent poll showed that about 60% of Republicans believe that party should become more conservative rather than stay the same or become more liberal. Of course, a similar number of Democrats (including Kondracke) believe the opposite but why do they get any say?!
Christian Conservative on November 20, 2008 at 7:36 PM
A flat out no!
Typical,Rush,Shaun,and Laura give Republicans the daily
truth about what is really going on in America,especially
in light of the Liberal MSM daily brainwashing and constant
talkin point of Leftys viewpoints!
Limbaugh,Hannity,and Ingram are in the trenches day in,and
day out,and the problem a lot of the critics have is that
they are affective,and keep the right ‘in the know’!
This reminds me of what ‘they’ have said about Governor
Sarah Palin,and just like ‘Talk Radio’ to the left,they
are portrayed as a threat!
When any Republican becomes affective,whether its Rush,’Tito
the Builder’,'Joe the Plumber’,ya can bet,certain pundits
just want the right to shut the h#ll up!!
canopfor on November 20, 2008 at 7:47 PM
You know it,s funny how Libs always say they what to tell us how we can win.Like they want more consev. to win election.Yel when pigs fly.
thmcbb on November 20, 2008 at 7:52 PM
Rush Limbaugh did not lose the election, but he did not help win it either. In contrast, Sean Hannity actually helped the Republicans try to win.
What lost the election were a cumulation of what may be called “headwinds” that precluded any Republican from being elected President — (i) a financial meltdown that created economic anxieties that have historically favored the Democrats and did this year; (ii) a financial bailout that muddied the waters of what was a Reaganesque economic message delivered by McCain and Palin on the campaign trail; (iii) the unpopularity of Bush, which is unfair but which is the result of unceasing attack by the Left and Bush not using the bully pulpit to defend his Administration; (iv) money and more money, some of it illegal, that Obama had; and (v) media bias that was absurdly in the tank for Obama and that operated effectively day-in, day-out as a propaganda machine for Democrats (e.g., Obama, the tax cutter).
The “tailwinds” that should have worked for us of strong military and national security, strong values and strong economy based on freedom and opportunity did not blow for us ths year because of the unusual economic situation that arose. Before the financial meltdown, McCain was ahead in the polls; after the meltdown, the economic anxieties, the money flowing to Obama and the media bias trumped all.
So, let’s not engage in scapegoating, but rather chart our course for the future. My view is that we do need to define ourselves as the party of economic freedom and naitonal security.
Phil Byler on November 20, 2008 at 8:00 PM
It was actually Jon Stewart/Steven Colbert’s audiences that were the most knowledgable about current affairs.
Grow Fins on November 20, 2008 at 8:12 PM
Karen who?
sdun1 on November 20, 2008 at 8:13 PM
EXACTLY. Time for them to go! They need to get an honest job picking peaches or apples, instead of lying for a living and ruining people’s lives.
THAT’S RIGHT. They don’t need to be muzzled. They should have the plug pulled on their broadcast.
No scapegoating here. Those numbskulls, Rush Limbo, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, Laura Ingraham, Mark Levin and the other talk radio hosts who have enriched themselves.. have made tens of millions of dollars every year enriching themselves.. built up audiences with tens of millions of listeners.. and Fox and all the others.. and NEVER MADE ANYTHING OF IT! Never made a mass movement. I think this is worth emphasizing this point. All of these conservative talk show hosts; Michael Savage, Rush Limbo, Sean Hannity, Bill Oreilly – Bill Oreilly doesn’t even pretend he’s a conservative. Fox, all these other phony, hypocrite fools. They have sucked up tens of millions of viewers and people who are now Ditto-heads, and Hanitized, and Sanitized. I mean, it’s just unbelievable! And look at them! Almost all of them. Most of them were opposing McCain. Condemning McCain urging you to vote against McCain, and it didn’t work. They can’t control anything because they didn’t build a movement. They didn’t do anything! They didn’t build a movement on the ground! All they did with all the money and all the support and all the huge following that they got. You know what they did with it? THEY ENRICHED THEMSELVES! It’s not enough that they get paid millions and millions of dollars every year. Their salary from doing the radio shows are millions of dollars a year and Sean Hannity gets millions from Fox for doing his TV show. They make millions just from their salary! And then these hogs have to sell books and trinkets, and this and that, and I’ll give you a special pin and a special that if you send me more gelt! I have nothing against making coin, but this is unbelievable! I mean, this is uh,… this is… they are so disgusting. When are you going to understand. When are you going to realize. We need a movement of sincere people. These conservative talk show hosts are frauds that cannot be trusted. All of them are part of the same Establishment that is controlled by the big multi billion dollar Corporations who maintain a virtual monopoly on the economy, politics, and culture.
apacalyps on November 20, 2008 at 8:27 PM
So where do you recommend we go to get our news? Who do you listen to/read?
4shoes on November 20, 2008 at 8:41 PM
it’s always reagan reagan reagan w/ the GOP! ok he was a fine president, but it’s time to stop living in the 80’s and enter the 21st century. if the GOP is not more tolerant and inclusive, it’s lost the young and hispanics forever and is officially dead.
Noneya on November 20, 2008 at 8:42 PM
Why, Kathleen Parker, how nice of you to join us. Yeah, those damn “bible thumpers,” who believe marriage should be between one man and one woman, who believe that ripping apart a baby in a mother’s womb is obscene, who believe in protecting those who are threatened by certain family members who don’t want to be bothered with having them around anymore, who believe in all the same things Rush and every other conservative believes in. Oh, yeah, let’s get rid of them and then we’ll really have a party…hello…hello…hey where’d everybody go!?!
I don’t know who you are, but your bigotry would resonate with the likes of Jeremiah Wright, David Dukes, and Christopher Hitchens.
Joe Pyne on November 20, 2008 at 8:48 PM
Um, Rush endorsed Fred Thompson during the SC primaries…
roxer on November 20, 2008 at 8:55 PM
Wow, bring up Rush Limbaugh and the leftists (apacalyps on November 20, 2008 at 8:27 PM) crawl out from under their rock and attempt to hijack a conservative blog, nice.
How come, if Rush is such an incompetent know nothing, his very name elicits screams for a reintroduction of the “fairness” doctrine?
Strange, very strange.
Joe Pyne on November 20, 2008 at 8:56 PM
The religious nuts, racists and homophobes are what’s killing the GOP. Do you really think the open-minded, less religious Millenials will ever embrace a backwards party like the G.O.P.?
Noneya on November 20, 2008 at 8:59 PM
“open-minded, less religious Millenials?” You mean religious bigots like Hitchens, Harris, and Dawkins? Maybe you mean those paragons of racial tolerance like Wright and Farrakhan? Or maybe it’s all those “open-minded” individuals who wish to eliminate the very definition for the union of one man and one woman – a definition, by the way, that has been in use in every country and every culture since the dawn of man? Oh, those “Millenials.” They’re over there in the Democratic Party, just make a hard left turn, you can’t miss em.
Joe Pyne on November 20, 2008 at 9:11 PM
Since they will be in charge once your bigoted generation dies off, they’ll be hard to miss.
Noneya on November 20, 2008 at 9:26 PM
Good point; “Rush is just a buffoon, but he must be shut up anyway!” Sort of like, “Sarah Palin is a mindless ditz, but she must be destroyed!”
We will when the Democrats get out of the FDR 30s.
ddrintn on November 20, 2008 at 9:26 PM
OoOoOh, the trolls come out at night when we get in our Rush Groove, baby.
LoneStarGal on November 20, 2008 at 9:31 PM
Since Bush has put the country on the brink of a Depression, I’d say they are the right party for the moment.
Noneya on November 20, 2008 at 9:36 PM
Here’s the difference between Ed and Allahpundit:
Allahpundit would have posted this with a headline that Rush DID lose the election!!
grtflmark on November 20, 2008 at 9:39 PM
Rush’s audience is made up of listeners thrilled to have their own fundamentally conservative ideas articulated and confirmed. He has brilliant wit and a steel-trap mind combined with a clear, conservative philosophy.
I have found that people who despise Limbaugh have never listened to his program. They just poll-parrot attacks that they think are the popular opinion of him.
onlineanalyst on November 20, 2008 at 9:43 PM
Let me put it to you this way, Sport.. When we (i.e. conservatives) are gone, then you and the other brown shirts can lock up the rest of the “religious nuts” in your indoctrination camps. That way anybody who doesn’t go along with your “enlightened” program can be summarily executed. That should make your day.
To the rest of the HotAir members, this is the kind of scum that the GOP doesn’t need, if he/she is in fact a member of the GOP. He/She? would fit in well with the Phelps cult. Bigotry, whether religious, racial, economic, or other, should have no place in the Conservative Movement, or the Republican Party.
I’ve got other things to do, I’ve already wasted enough time on this vile pig.
Joe Pyne on November 20, 2008 at 9:44 PM
That’s a good question. I’ve never actually put together a list of websites I read for news, hmm.. maybe I should. I watch and read many different sources. Many I disagree with. Keep in mind no two people agree on everything, okay. That doesn’t make the rest of them bad. But, me, I’m not anti-anything. I am for truth and against error. Period. If something’s true, I’m for it. If something’s false, I’m against it. And it doesn’t matter where it comes from. If it’s false I’m against it. And I think that’s the attitude we should always keep on everything, okay, what is truth. I am a Christian — an Independant Baptist Christian. The safest advice I can give you is that y’know, if your conservative radio talk show host believes something, okay, that’s great, well, listen to him, but… don’t ever get into this mess of saying I believe anything anybody says, even, especially me, okay. Check it out. Search the Scriptures. See if those things are so. I measure what everybody says up to the good ol’ King James Bible, that pillar of doctrinal truth (God’s Word). Someone once said a very sharp sharp statement. He said, “The Bible is the anvil that has warn out many hammers.” Alot of people have beat on that Book to get it to break… y’know.. it just doesn’t move… lol .. Oh, one website I tell people to read for news is the Calvary Prophecy Report. Thank you.
apacalyps on November 20, 2008 at 9:53 PM
That’s hitting the nail on the head, Ed. The GOP needs to acknowledge that the remaining GOP members in the House are those who are the most “conservative”.
Zorro on November 20, 2008 at 9:55 PM
This IS precisely the problem…
Had the GOP listened even a little to Rush and Sean and Laura, it would not be where it is (deservedly so) right now.
seanrobins on November 20, 2008 at 10:19 PM
RUSH RULES
deedtrader on November 20, 2008 at 10:29 PM
With a mighty assist from the likes of Democrats Barney Frank and Chris Dodd, wouldn’t you say?
ddrintn on November 20, 2008 at 10:35 PM
Ron White was right.
hillbillyjim on November 20, 2008 at 11:02 PM
As long as Rush insists that one must be pro-life to be a conservative, he does the Republican party no favors whatsoever. Considering the depth of the crater we’ve gotten the economy into, the legal status of fetuses is going to look less and less relevant. And the more the “conservatives” obsess over it, the less relevant they look.
Mal Carne on November 20, 2008 at 11:07 PM
Honestly, I don’t think conservatives obsess over it as much as liberals do. Sarah Palin (for example) didn’t preach so much a pro-life doctrine as MSM and other assorted Democrats badgered her about her supposedly retrograde views on the subject. Liberals seem to use it more as a litmus test than conservatives, or at least as much so.
ddrintn on November 20, 2008 at 11:15 PM
Comment pages: « Previous 1 2 3 Next »