Either Rush Limbaugh believes that Mitt Romeny's on a roll, or he's mad as hell at the political routing he may be sensing up ahead. Either way his dependably outlandish comments have really hit overdrive in recent weeks.
This week the portly pundit, who reportedly makes around $40 million dollars a year as the unofficial leader of the Republican Party, raised eyebrows when he claimed that some voters pulled the lever for President Obama just to prove to themselves they were not racist.
'Some people voted for Obama in 2008 to prove that they weren't racist, you know it and I know it,' Limbaugh. 'Now what's going to happen in 2012 is that some people are going to vote against Obama to prove that they're not stupid. You understand, folks really, now I...if the election were today it would be the biggest blowout that you could possibly imagine. You imagine somebody coming out of the ballot box today and say that they proudly voted for Obama? If the election were today...'ya I voted Obama,' What? Why? Who could back up a vote?'
Poll after poll fail to support Limbaugh's dramatic claims however, and attempting to inoculate his listeners against any charges of racism for despising both the man and his politics may not actually be helping.
Besides, racists don't suddenly reform themselves in the voting booth, do they? The truth is racist voters were more likely to vote against Obama in 2008 and they they will be less likely to vote for him in 2012, regardless of Limbaugh's preposterous rants.
Perhaps it's all the advertising revenue he lost over his so called 'Slut Gate' comments, or perhaps its sour grapes at having lost that round to Sandra Fluke, but these are particularly blunt comments from the conservative commentator, even by his own standards.
Critics say Limbaugh knows that the 2012 election will very likely be a tight race, with poll after poll finds the president leading his Republican challenger, so he is hoping to energize his base with frequent calls to arms.
The strength of the economic recovery could be the deciding factor in the outcome of this years presidential election and so it's clear the next few months will be crucial to President Obama's reelection.
Pundits on both sides will fume and fulminate until then, but surveys by groups like the Pew Research Center don't lie: 'Americans are more politically divided today than they ever before which means the 2012 election will be a nail biter for both conservatives and liberals alike,' they said.
The truth is no one knows who will win yet, so Limabaugh's amped up rhetoric won't help one way or the other.
That basic reality is not stopping him from being particularly unpleasant to his political enemies in recent weeks however. Just over the last month Limbaugh has compared the Occupy Wall Street protesters to the unhinged cannibal murderer in Miami, Florida. He also compared President Obama to both communists and Nazis (which suggests an imperfect understand of their widely diverging political outlooks).
Most controversially of all Limbaugh referred to the late victim of Mitt Romney's prep school forced haircut bullying episode, a man who later revealed he was gay, as a 'maggot infested dope smoker.'
It seems that victimizing the victim all over again, even if he is no longer here to defend himself, is a hold no longer barred in this election cycle.
Perhaps Limbaugh is hoping that his harsh words will prevent anyone from noticing he's one of an increasingly large number of multi-millionaires rooting for and donating to fellow multi-millionaire Miit Romeny's campaign.
Perhaps that's why Limbaugh was incensed this week to hear the president say the private sector is doing very well under the current economic conditions. Limbaugh is himself living proof of the president's claim.
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.cantwaittogo | Nov 11, 2012, 10:27 AM EST
Drug addicts are liars- Rush is a drug addict.
johnshiel | Jun 14, 2012, 12:04 PM EDT
this pair of statements lst week by Rush -- voting to prove nonrascist, and voting to prove nonstupid -- is maybe the funniest and most incisive things I've ever heard from rich fat Rush. If it offends you, ponder further...
BrianO | Jun 12, 2012, 03:49 PM EDT
Mcnmara, be careful or they may regulate what a person is allowed to say or write. You may be the target someday, I prefer to keep the power in the hands of the people and keep government as small as possible, a lot safer for both of us.
BrianO | Jun 11, 2012, 01:11 PM EDT
Did the EPA exist when this problem occurred? did it prevent it from happening? Did it pay for the clean up?. When people or business break the law they can be prosecuted. The EPA is a total waste of money, the legal system, the courts already have the power to penalize offenders. The EPA penalizes business that have never broken the law, prevents initiative through regulation, and ever expands which cost all, and through regulation can be used as a political tool. But why stop at the EPA let's go onto the many "czars" that have their own fiefdoms and further attack individual achievement. Why does the government run campaigns to eradicate mercury then run campaigns to use curly lightbulbs that contain mercury, don't they know that that mercury will get into the aquifer? The premise that since I am anti EPA that I am Pro pollution is false. I believe the last thing the epa wants is less pollution, their job is to regulate, so if there is less pollution then they need to find other things to regulate. Who knows maybe they will try to regulate breathing, CO2 is a bi product.
McNamara31 | Jun 11, 2012, 10:27 AM EDT
BrianO ..Without regulation to stop the excessive greed of the banks we have no security. This can be seen worldwide. And for the EPA....One day google and see how many towns in the U.S. are sitting on top of aquifers that contain massive toxic plumes which have contaminated suburban drinking water surrounding New York and other cities,and have been designated superfund sites. If the EPA was eliminated what would people do; pull out a straw and start sucking? There is good government which is essential and bad government like the one that got us into two unpaid wars and a near depression. I don’t want that style of short sighted, run up the credit cards and leave it for someone else to settle, type of government again.
RinehartS | Jun 11, 2012, 09:56 AM EDT
So sad to think there are people that still listen to this windbag/idiot. There will be a lot of this "grasping at straws" in hopes of saying/doing anything to get people to vote against Obama. VERY LITTLE TRUTH if any will be spout from the mouths of folks like Rush during this lead up to election day. Don't believe the hype.
BrianO | Jun 11, 2012, 09:28 AM EDT
You say this like government programs are guaranteed. The problem with words like balance is it is non specifis, your blance would be much different than mine. I have much more faith in the individual as opposed to zealot bureaucrats. Try dealing with the EPA(non elected), OSHA (non elected), FDA (non elected), even on a local basis try removing a tree from your own property these days. I'll take personal freedom,property rights, and a small government who's main job is protecting it's citizens from attack.
McNamara31 | Jun 11, 2012, 08:48 AM EDT
BrianO… History shows for Democracy to flourish there has to be a good balance between government (regulations) and the private sector. Our 401’s will be extremely vulnerable to the same financial scenario that hit us in 2008 because the proper regulations preventing too big to fail, and excessive leverage by the financial sector, are still not in place. The question is not "if" another crash will occur, but when it will occur. Most economists predict without proper banking regulations America will see and even greater crash within 10 years because the too big to fail banks have become that much bigger.
BrianO | Jun 11, 2012, 07:58 AM EDT
The poverty law center hmm who established this authority? Dear Maccnamara31, where to begin? you have no faith in self directed investments like 401ks but you have faith that unfunded pensions and retirement schemes based on an ever increasing population base. Controlled by an ever expanding government, who do not work for free but do have the legal power to tax (confiscate) the earned money of earners (you and I) the earner in the end has to be fleeced at a greater and greater amount. Ever heard of killing the golden goose? the solution is either growth of incomes, growth in population(provided they earn and do not take), or decline.
EamonnDublin | Jun 11, 2012, 04:57 AM EDT
To those who took the time to make sensible responses to my comment, "Thank You". I hadn't realised that it's not just that it was a black candidate, but that the tradition of voting Democrat is stronger than I had thought amongst black voters. As for "ByTheBay", I'm afraid that once again you let the mouth run away with your brain. You make a point and then state that I "wouldn't understand that concept". Well, ByTheBay, if you have a glance at your own "concept", you will see that the reason you gave for blacks voting Obama is that they are racist! You say they were getting their own back for being disenfranchised all those years. The same "concept" would allow the Native Americans to commit mass murder on both the black and white population of today's United States. You're right, ByTheBay, I certainly do not understand that concept. Thank you again to the other responders. Éamonn, Dublin, Ireland.
bogsidebunny | Jun 11, 2012, 01:22 AM EDT
Rush is 100% correct.
McNamara31 | Jun 10, 2012, 07:30 PM EDT
@EamonnDublin… In response to your post: In the days of the (Democratic) Kennedy/LBJ Presidency, civil rights for the black people were established including outlawing major forms of discrimination against African Americans (and women) including racial segregation. It ended unequal application of voter registration requirements and racial segregation in schools, at the workplace and by facilities that served the general public. Since the Democrat Party took up this issue radically changing the lives of people of color for the better, from that time the majority of black people always remembered this and vote for the Democrat which in the last election, was Obama. In fact, after signing the civil rights legislation aiding the rights of black people LBJ is quoted as saying “I think we just delivered the South to the Republican Party for a long time to come," Which is true to this day.
eiriamach | Jun 10, 2012, 06:02 PM EDT
Also, EamonnDublin, if you visit the Southern Poverty Law Center, you will find a continuously updated list of hate groups in the USA. A number of African-American and other ethnic minority groups are on that list. So it's a mistake for you to say that Americans apply the description "racist" only to whites. African Americans vote for Obama because Obama is a Democrat, and with the exception of some Southern African-American families that keep the tradition of Abraham Lincoln's party (Lincoln was The Great Emancipator), African Americans are Democrats (the party of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Acts, etc.).
Bythebay | Jun 10, 2012, 04:56 PM EDT
EamonnDublin, blacks in the US have been disenfranchised since the beginning of that country in 1776 by the whites running that country. No wonder they would support Obama in such numbers. As an American follower of Fox News you wouldn't understand that concept.
McNamara31 | Jun 10, 2012, 01:44 PM EDT
Keep thinking that Brian O and someday you’ll wake up and realize the country and its elections are manipulated by and for corporation greed by hacks like Limbaugh and you’ll be one of the masses with no health care, pension, or security in old age. Your 401 won’t even get you by 5 years of retirement, and you’ll realize you’ve been played. You allowed a group, including Limbaugh, Hannity and Karl Rove to so vilify the “other side” that it polarized our country in such a way that it’s irrevocably broken and no progress can be made. So go on and believe the birthers and close your eyes to the facts that the GOP left this country bleeding over 700,000 a month with two unpaid wars and an economy falling off the cliff. And when all your “informed” Limbaugh voters turn out this November you’ll know just what you’re getting; the same thing GWB left you in 2008.
BrianO | Jun 10, 2012, 12:52 PM EDT
Mcnamara31. the answer is ------informed.
dickmac | Jun 10, 2012, 10:01 AM EDT
I remember years back when Massachusetts Senator Ed Brooke was running for re-election. He had some "problems" and Jessie Jackson came to here to campaing for him. Jackson came out one day and loudly stated "If you don't vote for Ed Brook you are a Racist". Those words still ring in my ears. I had voted for him in the past along with many others that is why he was in office I thought he was qualified. With Jackson's remarks, I did not vote again for him like many others and he lost.
EamonnDublin | Jun 10, 2012, 09:09 AM EDT
I have never understood why the description "racist" is only applied to white people. When Obama was elected, the split amongst whites was approximately 50%-50% between McCain and Obama. The split amongst blacks was approximately 95% to 5% in favour of (black) Obama. But nobody ever said the blacks were racist in view this 95% - 5% split. Did the blacks vote for Obama simply because they considered him to be the better candidate? I suggest that there was racism involved. I also suggest that anybody who says otherwise is beyond reason. Éamonn, Dublin, Ireland.
Seanmor | Jun 10, 2012, 08:24 AM EDT
It is quite possble that some people did vote for Obama soley because of his race. Exit poles indicated the about 55% of Catholisa voted for him, even thoigh most of them knew, or should have known that he was strongly pro-abortion and that his favorite clergyman called on God from the pulpit "to damn America".
McNamara31 | Jun 09, 2012, 10:05 PM EDT
And what do we call the people who listen to this hate filled boar?
eiriamach | Jun 09, 2012, 10:03 PM EDT
On the rational side of the question, a NY Times writer actually researched what role racism played in the 2008 election. in "How Racist Are We? Ask Google," Seth Stephens-Davidowitz reports on searches in which 2008 voters used Google data bases. "Based on the large gains for Democrats in 2008, Mr. Obama should have received about 57 percent of votes in both Denver and Wheeling. Denver and Wheeling, though, exhibit different racial attitudes. Denver had the fourth lowest racially charged search rate in the country. Mr. Obama won 57 percent of the vote there, just as predicted. Wheeling had the seventh highest racially charged search rate in the country. Mr. Obama won less than 48 percent of the Wheeling vote. Add up the totals throughout the country, and racial animus cost Mr. Obama three to five percentage points of the popular vote." Increased voting rates among African Americans added only one percent to votes for Obama West Virginia had the most racially charged Google searches in 2008, and rejected Obama. The author notes that W. Virginia "recently held its Democratic presidential primary, in which Mr. Obama was challenged by a convicted felon. The felon, who is white, won 41 percent of the vote." I figure this author under-estimates the role of racism. After all, many racists cannot spell 'Kenya" and probably think Google is a mouthwash.
rgray222 | Jun 09, 2012, 04:38 PM EDT
Some people voted for Obama to prove that they were not racist now they have to vote for Romney to prove they are not idiots!
realdog | Jun 09, 2012, 03:17 PM EDT
Well Arbuckle, I am thankful my education was focused on science. Only because science will eventually prove your premeise or disprove it and hopefully before your false premise kills to many people. In the other arts however, a false premise can be declared truth for as long as the prof. says it is so and can censor and punish those who disagree. The last place a lousey parent should send their child because that child is in lack of any stable principle. In fact many come with the idea that the best principle is always a fluxating principle. Hence the original Constitution is illegitimate and should always be in a state of redefinition. Therefore, with this kind of confusion anyone can be called a racist. This being a Irish publication it should be well familiar with the chaos and destruction of pedafillia from those we trust. Yet I will bet my diploma that I can find more than one prof. who will say that it is excusable given the right circumstances.
hollabackgurl | Jun 09, 2012, 01:14 PM EDT
So now Limbaugh is giving out hall passes to racists? That's what his harsh words suggest.
RandomThoughts | Jun 09, 2012, 12:32 PM EDT
I do not know why anyone listens to this hypocrite...he's nothing more than a pill popping, sex crazed megalomaniac who has to travel over seas to pay to get it (if you know what I mean)!!! Rush Limbaugh is the very definition of modern day racism who has no business commenting on others but the problem is he is very much in the business of commenting and crticizing others while enjoying immunity from others commenting on him. Continue to end his phony reign and hit him where it hurts, his wallet. Stop listening and the rest will follow,
Arbuckle Doc | Jun 09, 2012, 11:16 AM EDT
realdog, it seems, (From your post) that a LOT of good educational resources were simply thrown away, on your schooling; right??? - Doc
Arbuckle Doc | Jun 09, 2012, 11:07 AM EDT
Of course, Rush would be the "Expert", when it comes to Racism; he's carried a full load of it, for years, and should recognize it, easily!!! ~ However, if the premise, that a vote for President Obama was made to show a lack of Racism, then, wouldn't that same vote be an example of SEXISM, since Hillary Clinton is a FEMALE??? Doc
diecrackers | Jun 09, 2012, 11:04 AM EDT
I dunno about anyone else but I voted for McCain to prove I was racist.
GetReal1 | Jun 09, 2012, 11:03 AM EDT
One question: How many articles does Dara Kelly write about liberals that begin by commenting on their weight and then how much money they make? Is it only fair game when you're talking about conservative, or it just an unconscious decision to warn readers that Kelly's following comments are not to be taken seriously. Fred's comment was right on, there was certainly an effort by the Obama campaign to create this feeling that voting Obama for president would prove to the country and the world that we're in a post racial world. So let's put that down as another Obama failure, as "the great uniter" played the race card to beat Hillary and then continues to use it as a shield against any policy criticism. Americans might be smart enough to vote for the candidate with the best plan for pulling our country out of this debt & spending cycle that's crippling our economy. Here's a hint for Dara - it's not Obama.
DWinES | Jun 09, 2012, 10:58 AM EDT
When Rush steps into the booth to vote he will be pulling the handle for Obama....the man is making 40 mil a year talking about the pres do you really think he wants to lose his cash machine? Sean and Bii will be voting the same way
Kelley97431 | Jun 09, 2012, 10:51 AM EDT
The bias of this writer is transparent to the point of embarrassment. According to her: "The truth is racist voters were more likely to vote against Obama in 2008 and they they will be less likely to vote for him in 2012..." Huh? She's talking about racists, and Limbaugh is making the claim about people who are NOT racist and wanted to demonstrate it with their vote. Plus, she may even be wrong about racists being more likely to vote against Obama, when no one would pretend that there weren't plenty of people who voted for him because he is black. It cut both ways.
ch3r0k33 | Jun 09, 2012, 10:42 AM EDT
So using his logic, what does that say about americans who did not vote for him, including Rush?? The next question is does Rush even know he is racist or does he just think his intellect and breeding makes him superior?
realdog | Jun 09, 2012, 10:40 AM EDT
I can't believe your poor insight. He is not talking about racists trying to prove they are not. He is talking about Joe citizen who gets accused by liberal academia that he is a racist but that he just doesn't realize it because he is to stupid to know himself. This is how the vast majority of university academia view the general public. And I spent 10 years of my life in the university enviroment to see it first hand. If you can't see that then you are hopelessly in the dark.
FreedomTrain | Jun 09, 2012, 10:37 AM EDT
I think most Americans feel like that they will vote for the candidate that understands the most about the struggles that they (the average American) go through every day. I just can't see how Romney would began to understand what the everyday American goes through. After all it's hard to imagine that someone who has a car elevator in the garage of all the houses that he owns so that he can automatically select the latest $100,000 car he owns really understands what the average American goes through. Romney did have his chance to understand what the average American goes through however, he decided to avoid military service at the height of the fighting of the Vietnam War after high school by seeking and receiving four draft deferments, according to Selective Service records. They included college deferments and a 31-month stretch as a “minister of religion” in France, a classification for Mormon missionaries that the church at the time feared was being overused. The country was cutting troop levels by the time he became eligible for the draft, and his lottery number was not called. In contrast there are many examples of famous Mormons who bravely decided to serve their country. Examples of these brave Americans who are also Mormons include: Lieutenant General Bruce Carlson USAF (active), Lieutenant Colonel Larry Chesley USAF (retired) POW, and Lieutenant General James King U.S. Army (retired). So I think who Americans are going to vote for really comes down to one thing. Who understands me the average American and will address my concerns the most. I just can’t imagine it would be Romney.
Paul Lang | Jun 09, 2012, 10:33 AM EDT
Rush Limbaugh is this century's Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder. And, the article is correct to suggest that Rush's GOP and his sycophants are shaking in their boots.
hollish22 | Jun 09, 2012, 10:32 AM EDT
Sorry,but,Rush is right on this one. I don't listen to Rush because I think he is too extreme and in some cases very wrong. However what he is saying is exactly what I did and I don't think I was alone. I just hope I can have a clear conscience this time around. I love it when people from other countries or people without the race experiences we have here, comment on them. They have no idea what they are talking about.
fred | Jun 09, 2012, 10:31 AM EDT
Wow! Does this seriously pass for objective journalism? You make sure to get your licks in rightaway - he's fat and rich - no matter how irrelevant it is to the story. And of course some people voted Obama to prove they're not racist. The entire education system and mass media (including you) are geared to getting people to demonstrate that they're not racist. As usual, Limbaugh is right.
Ranger Dan | Jun 09, 2012, 10:31 AM EDT
I can't think of many people I have less in common with than Rush Limbaugh. He has become irrelevent, except to ignoramuses. It's a sign of low IQ to quote the blowhard.
wow | Jun 09, 2012, 10:30 AM EDT
If Rush is spot on, then Out, damn'd spot! out, I say! This man is a fool and has minion fools for listeners.
Ter | Jun 09, 2012, 10:24 AM EDT
IMHO, Rush is just another media monger. Palin was the main reason I voted for Obama. Leaving her in the frozen lands of Alaska is probably the best place for her. Washington is already the dumping ground for plenty of idiots.
Budduggly | Jun 09, 2012, 10:21 AM EDT
How wrong can you be. Bottom line, Rush is spot on in his comments. Spot on!
Norman | Jun 09, 2012, 10:10 AM EDT
And Rush Limbaugh has been trying ever since to prove the American people wrong.
dev4 | Jun 09, 2012, 09:46 AM EDT
Americans bought in to a dream and had a nightmare.