Video: O’Reilly defends Limbaugh from Letterman
posted at 4:35 pm on April 1, 2009 by Allahpundit
Via the ‘Busters and Ace, who’s caught up in a remembrance of funny things long, long past. Telling O’R that he’s too smart to believe the things he says is vintage Letterman — deadpan, insulting, but wry enough that it can be played as a joke. Bringing up Limbaugh’s drug abuse is simply vicious, and O’Reilly, to his credit, calls him on it, prompting a rare moment on “Late Show” when Letterman seems caught off-guard. As an antidote to the demonization, if you missed the Salon piece by Limbaugh’s lefty cousin in Headlines this morning, be sure to dive in after watching. It’s the most affecting and humanizing story about him I think I’ve ever read. Sample:
He’s the guy who puts “March of the Penguins” on his home movie theater screen for the little cousins to watch and makes sure his candy bowls are filled with jelly beans and doesn’t swear when my nephew tries to throw his antiques down the stairs. He’s the guy who came from nothing to something and knows what it feels like to miss Missouri.
One Thanksgiving he stands in front of all us relatives in his Versailles-looking living room, and before my grandpa prays over our meal, Cousin Rusty apologizes. He says he’s afraid he has made it tough to be a Limbaugh this past year, and his voice breaks like I have never heard it do before. Cousin Rusty is OK…
I rarely listen to Rush on the radio. But when I do, it’s because I’m scanning stations while driving, and I happen to hear his voice. As a family member I’m not as close to him as my mom and dad, my grandma and grandpa, but his voice still reminds me of home. He sounds like my dad and a few of my uncles, he sounds like himself, and it makes me homesick, if that makes any sense at all. So I listen for a few minutes. I rarely agree with or even like what he says, but I can’t hate him. In fact, I love him. He’s family.
Maybe he really is a harmless, lovable little fuzzball after all?
Blowback
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Not biting. BillO must have his fingers crossed.
platypus on April 1, 2009 at 4:38 PM
The Salon piece is trying to make him more human and less intimidating, because his name — like Dick Cheney’s and Karl Rove’s — inspires pure terror among the left.
chunderroad on April 1, 2009 at 4:40 PM
Goon. LOL.
getalife on April 1, 2009 at 4:40 PM
Norm MacDonald owns Letterman
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 4:41 PM
Off Topic
Cavuto is TEARING A NEW A HOLE into some congressbitch from FL
blatantblue on April 1, 2009 at 4:42 PM
You know, Allahpundit, it is so easy to tell when someone has never listened to Rush, and by that I mean someone who actually knows the program. You are making yourself look ignorant and tabloidish.
Especially since Rush’ ratings are skyrocketing.
BigD on April 1, 2009 at 4:42 PM
But she does hate Ann Coulter, who she hasn’t listened to.
jgapinoy on April 1, 2009 at 4:42 PM
Letterman is vacuous, idiotic and childish. Liberal.
therightwinger on April 1, 2009 at 4:43 PM
Ah, that “remembrance of funny things long, long past.” Norm MacDonald was undoubtedly one of the funniest SNL writers of all time. Comedy went tits up in 2000, I’d say.
chunderroad on April 1, 2009 at 4:43 PM
I, too, remember a time when David Letterman was funny. I used to watch him with my dad, and we’d get annoyed when we missed the Top Ten. We watched Stupid Human Tricks, and actually laughed at the show. Those days are gone, and Letterman has turned into a bitter, partisan old man. You know what I watch instead?
Frasier, on Lifetime. 12-1 AM. I know where he stands politically, and it is actually a really funny show, it has held up pretty well over time.
jimmy the notable on April 1, 2009 at 4:45 PM
I think it’s especially idiotic to call out Limbaugh on his addiction when half of Letterman’s guests are practicing narcotics fiends. How many actors, musicians, and other people on his staff for example are recreational users or have been to rehab.
Of course, this stuff is only wrong if a conservative does it.
joeindc44 on April 1, 2009 at 4:45 PM
Don’t look in the mirror while you’re typing.
Richard Romano on April 1, 2009 at 4:46 PM
You know, Big D, it is so easy to tell when someone has such a knee-jerk reaction to AP that they take a post that’s against demonizing Rush and read it as an attack.
Especially since HotAir’s traffic is at near-record levels.
Karl on April 1, 2009 at 4:46 PM
Nine minutes and thirty-one seconds of two idiots talking to each other?
Who was bored enough to record that?
Thankfully, I know I will never be bored enough to watch it.
Jim708 on April 1, 2009 at 4:47 PM
Letterman is funny.
rush is not.
getalife on April 1, 2009 at 4:48 PM
You used the wrong account for your second comment.
Remember, “Proud Rino,” next.
blatantblue on April 1, 2009 at 4:49 PM
Yes, AP linked that in the article.
I’m gonna go on a tangent here: You’ve gotta watch Norm absolutely crack up Conan O’Brien. Its a shame that nobody ever really “got” him. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoLm-vD89SQ
jimmy the notable on April 1, 2009 at 4:49 PM
It certainly is, because we’re the ones who even pay lip-service to standards. Lib cherry-picking at frailties is the homage vice pays to virtue.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 4:49 PM
WTF is that all about? All I said is that it’s obvious from AP’s post that he’s not a listener to the show. He writes about Rush with the same level of knowledge as any other MSMer.
Who are you, AP’s mother? His boyfriend?
I’m sure I didn’t hurt his precious little feelings.
BigD on April 1, 2009 at 4:50 PM
Letterman hasn’t been funny for a very long time. The fact that hes getting his ass handed to him by Leno on a nightly basis is proof of this.
Rush on the other hand IS funny. If you think otherwise, you’re probably the butt of the joke.
Doughboy on April 1, 2009 at 4:51 PM
Letterman is as funny as crib death….Limbaugh is as funny as Swift.
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 4:51 PM
Letterman just gave a perfect example of liberal arrogance and ignorance.
Because he cannot wrap him mind around how another man can believe something that he rejects, then that man by default is a liar? How dare this buffoon suggest that those one the Right do not really believe the things they believe.
They live in such a bubble, and surround themselves with so much like minded idiocy that they are incapable of allowing another man his own honest thoughts.
Fool.
Daddy-O on April 1, 2009 at 4:51 PM
Excellent point about the ongoing hypocrisy coming from Hollywood and the media. They live in their little bubble world and have absolutely no connection to life out here in the real world. Truth is they couldn’t make it out here in the real world. They’d all be in rehab.
sherry on April 1, 2009 at 4:51 PM
I’ve wondered that. The trolls seem -do- seem to come in within moments of each other, and respond to each other’s comments.
lorien1973 on April 1, 2009 at 4:51 PM
Not watching. I stopped caring about Letterman years ago.
bluelightbrigade on April 1, 2009 at 4:52 PM
Snaggle tooth is still on the air?
Wade on April 1, 2009 at 4:52 PM
Letterman’s a dick and a tool. His form of entertainment is poking fun at people that don’t belong to his clique, and he’s too stupid to argue the facts about anything.
jeffersonschild on April 1, 2009 at 4:53 PM
Why are there 13 images of Palin on the home page despite only one of the stories being about her? Is it an April Fool’s thing or some sort of obsession?
masnare on April 1, 2009 at 4:54 PM
The liberal meme – conservatives are either ‘stupid’ or, when clearly they are not, they are liars ‘pretending’ to believe what they say they do. How did liberals become so narrow minded?
ProfessorMiao on April 1, 2009 at 4:54 PM
Got to hand it to O’Reilly to go on Snarky Letterman’s show and make him speechless. Letterman has worked in NYC so long he doesn’t recognize that half his potential audience won’t listen to his stupid leftwing drivel. Interesting that Letterman doesn’t like Chavez nationalizing everything but seems to ignore what’s going on by his own beloved President!
Christian Conservative on April 1, 2009 at 4:54 PM
But that thing he does with his tie is still funny 20 years later!
lorien1973 on April 1, 2009 at 4:54 PM
What really bothers me about the left demonizing Rush for his drug addiction is that he didn’t go out looking for something to help him evade reality, he sought relief from intense back pain through legal means and it got the best of him. He freely admitted his problem and sought help for it. As a back pain sufferer myself I can sympathize with what Rush went through.
single stack on April 1, 2009 at 4:56 PM
The highlight of Letterman’s show was when Jerry Lawler slapped the late Andy Kaufman out of his chair. Letterman’s look was priceless. It’s been downhill from there.
kingsjester on April 1, 2009 at 4:56 PM
BigD, what the hell are you talking about?
Where have all these deranged anti-AP people come from? It’s almost as if they are the left wing infiltrators that Andrew Breitbart talked about here.
Nessuno on April 1, 2009 at 4:56 PM
It was a hellish betrayal by a family member for personal gain, who trades on her uncle’s famous last name in all of her personal encounters, and complains while doing it. I felt sad for Rush today. Luckily for him, he says his deceased parents would be extremely proud of what he has accomplished and who he is. I know this gives him comfort and strength to fight the good fight.
JiangxiDad on April 1, 2009 at 4:57 PM
Rush is smart.
Letterman is not.
Letterman is looking creepier too with each passing year.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 4:57 PM
Calling AP on his veering to the left lane is hardly being a KosSACK infiltrator…
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 4:58 PM
Yeah and rush is one meal away from exploding.
Cons are not funny.
getalife on April 1, 2009 at 4:58 PM
Good Lord, AP, call off your little brigade, please.
Did I miss the comments registration or something?
BigD on April 1, 2009 at 4:59 PM
Why isn’t there a picture of Palin associated with this important story?
Realist on April 1, 2009 at 4:59 PM
Rush is funny
Letterman is not
long_cat on April 1, 2009 at 5:00 PM
Long ago when Letterman wasn’t a self-righteous Clinton tool his humor was somewhat tolerable for the average inebriated college student. Anything discussion requiring any knowledge or depth has always exceeded Letterman’s mental capacity. Silly jests or deep discussions with airheaded actors and actresses maybe but on matters philosophy or politics Letterman is Jessica Simpson with a deeper voice.
The wisdom of Johnny Carson lives on in his wisely choosing NOT to have Letterman succeed him at the Tonight Show. Even if that meant choosing a lukewarm former strip-joint comedian like Jay Leno instead.
viking01 on April 1, 2009 at 5:00 PM
Pity we can’t all be as svelte as Roseanne and Rosie’ O’doughnut….wait a minute…
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 5:00 PM
I didn’t know Rush Limbaugh was a comedian. Has his show been an elaborate joke?!
Proud Rino on April 1, 2009 at 5:00 PM
Fat, but not creepy.
Libs are unintentionally funny.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 5:01 PM
And when Letterman’s baby is in his twenties, Dave will be around 102 years old.
His liberal politics and moral relativism stinks.
kingsjester on April 1, 2009 at 5:01 PM
This is all I’ve ever heard from the left vis a vis Limbaugh.
He’s wrong just because….and he’s fat, he’s a drug addict, he’s a big tub of dumb face.
And I’ve noticed that people call him a narcissist just for getting on the radio and telling the world what he thinks. A narcissist for building a monumentally successful brand.
I still have to note the ridiculous, childish irony that Obama, he of the presidential seal before he was even elected, is NOT a narcissist to these people.
Limbaugh is a better man, and has done far more good with his life, than any of these childish imbeciles who insult him.
Hawkins1701 on April 1, 2009 at 5:01 PM
Irony.
Slublog on April 1, 2009 at 5:02 PM
You know who Norm reminds me of? Jim Treacher.
jimmy the notable on April 1, 2009 at 5:02 PM
Do you listen?
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 5:02 PM
The entire liberal argument is “shut up” – instapundit had a great video about that yesterday.
lorien1973 on April 1, 2009 at 5:02 PM
Letterman showed his true intelligence (or lack thereof) when he mentioned RNC chairmen “Richard Steele”. Wouldn’t something like that be written on the cards he looks at? Maybe he should invest in a shiny new teleprompter…
niuhuskie2009 on April 1, 2009 at 5:02 PM
Thomas Swift was hardly a stand-up comic….Limbaugh’s got more wit at 0300 than Bambi has by 2355….
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 5:03 PM
Give ‘em a break. It’s easier to do that than to stir up their two brain cells to build up a substantive argument.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 5:03 PM
You seem unclear on the concept.
lorien1973 on April 1, 2009 at 5:04 PM
Rush is funny
Letterman is not.
Brian on April 1, 2009 at 5:04 PM
Only a commenter named Slublog could have said that! I hope AP isn’t offended.
BigD on April 1, 2009 at 5:04 PM
O’Reilly is certainly not my favorite. I do give him credit for standing up to Letterman. Letterman was funny a very, very long time ago back in the day. Not so much now. I don’t understand his Liberal thinking and find it offensive most of the time. I have been searching around for a late night alternative. I guess a rerun of O’Reilly at 11 PM will work for the time being.
BetseyRoss on April 1, 2009 at 5:04 PM
Rush is right, you are Letterman are just… wrong.
ManInBlack on April 1, 2009 at 5:04 PM
LOLOLOLOL
No, “Thomas” Swift sure wasn’t, but I think you might be!
Proud Rino on April 1, 2009 at 5:05 PM
I used to like Letterman – I’m old enough to remember his daytime show. Can’t stand him now. He is such a typical lib.
I have never doubted that Rush is a wonderful man in his personal life. That niece should feel very lucky that she was born into his family.
Brat on April 1, 2009 at 5:05 PM
I didn’t know I was supposed to be laughing at Limbaugh. Huh.
Proud Rino on April 1, 2009 at 5:06 PM
Watch C-Span and roll your own comedy….Jim Treacher and I played that game back during September I think….
talk back to the TV in their own voices…
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 5:06 PM
I agree. While I’m not an O’R fan, I think he made Letterman look like the idiot that he truly is. No one is holding a gun to his or anyone elses head to listen to Rush or any other radio/TV talk show so why does he have such a problem with him. As far as him questioning Oreilly’s decision not to fund Sean Penn movies, obviously Letterman can’t grasp the idea of someone having values and beliefs and is willing to back them up. There are many celebrities who I will not spend my money on because of their outrageous political statements or actions.
The question is…will Letterman’s calling Rush “tubby” get the same attention and derision as when Laura Ingraham called Meghan McCain “plus size”?
AZ_Mike on April 1, 2009 at 5:07 PM
Two things.
1) Sewing discord among the right is a goal of these infiltrators. So while it’s not proof of it, it’s achieving their goals for them. Well done.
2) Give me one thing, other than tepidly supporting the TARP plan, that can legitimately be described as “veering to the left lane”.
Keep in mind, not supporting Sarah Palin is not veering left, since there are a lot of legitimate reasons to not like her. For instance, she got destroyed by her terrible performance in the media. That isn’t a left/right issue, it’s a competence issue.
I don’t have an interest in defending AP. I just think too many commenters here are totally unhinged, and I have an interest in keeping people tethered to reality.
I have my own gripes with AP. (For instance, I think he has been sucked into the jaded, too-cool-to-care attitude of Andrew Levy and other NY based conservatives.) But calling anti-Palin people left wing is ridiculous exaggeration.
Nessuno on April 1, 2009 at 5:07 PM
Pwned.
chunderroad on April 1, 2009 at 5:07 PM
Well in the spirit of fool’s day and all that….Jonathan Swift being a cleric may well have made him one….
*wink
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 5:08 PM
Off topic – but just read on NRO that Palin has issued a press release in defense Sen. Stevens. Another babbling brook.
pcpower1 on April 1, 2009 at 5:08 PM
Letterman is a kneejerk.
As predictable as one of those old plastic “drinking bird” tilting/dipping toys.
Low blow, rise for idiotic applause.
Low blow, rise for idiotic applause.
ZZzzzzzzz.
profitsbeard on April 1, 2009 at 5:09 PM
BigD,
Call off the brigades? Now whose little feelings are hurt? Boo. Frickin’. Hoo.
It is not at all obvious from the post that AP never listens to Rush — that’s purely your projection. But prove me wrong. Quote what AP wrote that supports your claim.
Karl on April 1, 2009 at 5:09 PM
Del Delemonte did the best getalife impression. “I will now brush my teeth and turn my bra around.” LOL.
chunderroad on April 1, 2009 at 5:09 PM
Yeah, nothing beats Obama telling a retard joke. Hilarious!
malclave on April 1, 2009 at 5:10 PM
Ok.
Now
Next, log into Noneya for your next comment.
After that, use that new sesquepedophilia one..
blatantblue on April 1, 2009 at 5:10 PM
And, even better, Limbaugh doesn’t need to call Hillary at 3 AM to make a decision….
dmh0667 on April 1, 2009 at 5:11 PM
Big D…LOL…I got ur back. ~B
Brian on April 1, 2009 at 5:11 PM
That can be stretched to the point we are expected to be as lockstep as the DUmmies or Kosby Kidz…..
TARP is enough, but “too cool to care” sort of nails it…
AP is one of those types who can’t be bothered to hide his disdain for the main body of the party and feels that as long as the zombie social cons vote the mushy moderates should run the show….
YMMV
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 5:11 PM
Charges were dropped? Prosecutorial misconduct? I could think of some things to say in defense of Stevens as well.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 5:12 PM
NOT ACCURATE. He made a SPECIAL OLYMPICS joke, about how every Special Olympian is a retard.
Proud Rino on April 1, 2009 at 5:12 PM
Nessuno, I don’t know where you came from or when you showed up but I am not going to bother myself with you.
BigD on April 1, 2009 at 5:13 PM
O’Reilly 1
Letterman 0
echosyst on April 1, 2009 at 5:14 PM
Rush is allot of things…funny being one of them. Ur right Big D…allot of panties in a wad today. guezz. ~B
Brian on April 1, 2009 at 5:14 PM
but every Ogabe gaffe is made by one…
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 5:14 PM
NOT ACCURATE. He’s NEVER told a joke. He just doesn’t have it in him.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 5:14 PM
Ugh, jeez, you guys have no sense of humor.
Proud Rino on April 1, 2009 at 5:16 PM
Calling someone’s competence into question on the basis of a couple of questionable interviews given while she was part of a campaign not her own is hardly being “tethered to reality”. Substantive issues I can understand. “My God, she’s soooooo stooopid” I can’t.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 5:17 PM
Bozo the Clown Eras has already spent more money than last year’s whole budget….
and believe me we ain’t seen nothin’ yet…
sven10077 on April 1, 2009 at 5:17 PM
Obama was trying to say that he WAS a joke.
And as clumsy as a retard.
So, you are right, he was/is not kidding at all.
profitsbeard on April 1, 2009 at 5:17 PM
Limbaugh is a cool guy – the arrogant act is just an act – he is a humble guy underneath.
Sarah Palin is extremely intelligent and very politically savvy. She knows what she’s doing.
Bobby Jindal is an extremely intelligent guy – I often joke and call him the “smartest man in the world” – it’s only a half joke.
The only reason ANY of these people have a “reputation” for anything other than what they are is because of a DETERMINED MSM. I mean seriously – the next time you see a journalist – any journalist – do what I do … and tell them you have more respect for the prostitution occupation.
Don’t let the MSM paint your opinions for you. They’re all losers.
HondaV65 on April 1, 2009 at 5:18 PM
That must be why he can quote “harmless, lovable little fuzzball.”
Jim Treacher on April 1, 2009 at 5:19 PM
I’m so sick of idiots saying he was a ‘drug addict’ as if he was hooked on coke.
The man had surgery and received pain pills that he got hooked on… I had pain pills after surgery, on day nine of taking the pills I stopped taking them and it hurt. It felt like my bones were being squeezed, then I realized that I was going through withdraw and trashed the rest of the pills.
Rush is right… and the wrong people hate that fact so they grasp at straws to discredit him… because they can’t do so on ideology.
ironmonk on April 1, 2009 at 5:19 PM
Not quite. Remember the black tie event where he and McCain did their respective stand-up routines? He told lots of jokes (now whether he was funny is an entirely different question).
Pianobuff on April 1, 2009 at 5:19 PM
I don’t think you’re right here Allah… O’Reilly seems to be clearly (to me) talking about the scheme to make Rush the head of the Republican Party, and gets on Dave about even bringing up such nonsense… I don’t see anything that indicates O’Reilly was “calling him” on the drug thing.
RightWinged on April 1, 2009 at 5:19 PM
Whatever he is, he sure seems to be stuck in Letterman’s craw.
MB4 on April 1, 2009 at 5:20 PM
No, he told “jokes”. McCain demolished him.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 5:21 PM
Watch the full clip. O’Reilly berates David for taking cheap shots at Rush and asks him why he does it.
Pianobuff on April 1, 2009 at 5:21 PM
I remember one Halloween, during the traditional kids’ costumes bit, one kid came out with a cabinet strapped to his chest. Letterman opened it up and it was jam-packed with pill bottles. The kid was dressed as Limbaugh’s medicine cabinet, of course. That was pretty funny. This? This is just an angry guy venting his helpless rage because he doesn’t seem to realize his guy won.
Jim Treacher on April 1, 2009 at 5:22 PM
Really? We’re laughing maniacally at your Dear Leader and his antics.
ddrintn on April 1, 2009 at 5:22 PM
Kinda’ my point.
Pianobuff on April 1, 2009 at 5:24 PM
I believe that.
Proud Rino on April 1, 2009 at 5:24 PM
Neil was on fire, it was awesome
Danger on April 1, 2009 at 5:25 PM
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