Rush Limbaugh-- King of the Republicans

Original Link: http://downwithtyranny.blogspot.com/2009/03/rush-limbaugh-king-of-republicans.html

Since Time Magazine has decreed that criticizing Rush Limbaugh is "over the line, I hunted up an old comrade in the online battles against fascism, my friend Dan, who knows a lot more about Limbaugh than anyone at Time. When I caught up with him, he had just been reading David Plouffe's piece in today's Washington Post, Minority Leader Limbaugh. Dan felt inspired and agreed to let me share his thoughts with DWT readers. Dan:

Rush Limbaugh is loved by less than 2% of the American people and feared by 100% of elected Republicans. Cross this fat, self absorbed junkie and you will feel the wrath of the GOP base after he works up his listeners into a hate filled rage. Right wing radio is huge while lefty radio fizzles. I always dismissed that by saying that liberals could think for themselves and didn’t need a ranting gasbag to inspire them. But there is more to it than that. Right wing radio turns their listeners into victims. There is never an attempt to inform but only to rabble rouse. Limbaugh is the anti-intellectual. If an intelligent caller accidentally gets past his aggressive call screening, he disconnects them. Like Bush, right wing talk show hosts only want opinions that support their own. The big question is, why would anyone sit through three hours a day of hysterical ranting?

Rahm Emanuel set a trap for the GOP by declaring Limbaugh to be their “intellectual” leader. Michael Steele tried to deny that and within 48 hours he was prostrating himself before Jabba the Hut and begging his forgiveness, Rush declared that he wanted Obama to fail and the world heard that to be that he wanted America to fail. Republicans were trapped with no way out. If they challenge Limbaugh they are screwed and if they agree that they want America to fail, they are screwed.

Here is the real deal. Republicans have chosen to be obstructionist. Just say NO! The only plan they offer up is the same failed ideas that took the bus over the cliff. They want more tax cuts for the top 2% and less regulation. The public isn’t buying it. The elected Republicans are not allowed to vote their conscience, but only as a block. Just like a bunch of brown shirts clicking their heels together. Now they have lost any hopes of independents or moderate Democrats crossing over. The base is the hard right and there aren’t enough of them to win elections. Oh sure, they can still hold sway in the slave states, but even Texas is within sight of having control taken back by the Dems. Republicans better find some way to climb aboard the Obama express or they will be consigned to wander around in the desert for the next 40 years. A political party made up only of Exxon and Bible thumping racists cannot long survive.

The collapse of the Republican party will be bad for everyone. Without a strong opposition party, the Democrats will soon sink into the same corrupt practices that sank the Republicans. Let’s face it. Democrats are not one bit more honest than Republicans. They just have a philosophy that considers people to be more important than corporations. That doesn’t mean that they cannot be bribed by the coal industry. If you get absolute power you will absolutely be corrupted. Bush could not have destroyed America without Republicans having absolute power. The best thing for the country is when your party is on the verge of losing power. For their own good, the GOP needs to abandon the hard right and the Christian Taliban.