The Limbaugh Strategy
Obama Validating A Return To McCarthyism Through His Silence
At some point, Rush Limbaugh must have decided that if they weren’t going to do it, then he was. The “it” in question is the act of actually leading the Republican Party back to prominence and their roots. Limbaugh was direct when it came to his stance on Barack Obama; if Obama’s policies were going to lean towards socialism, then he wished that Obama would fail.
That statement, made initially on his radio show weeks before the election, was repeated often on cable news outlets. BET's January 23, 2009 article "I want Obama to Fail" focuses on Limbaugh's wanting Obama to fail because he is African-american. In reality, that’s not what Limbaugh's intended meaning was. Limbaugh unapologetically rehashed his statement on his radio program and his recent speech to CPAC;
Sticking To His Guns On Obama
“They hoped George Bush failed. So what is so strange about being honest to say that I want Barack Obama to fail if his mission is to restructure and reform this country so that capitalism and individual liberty are not its foundation? Why would I want that to succeed? “
Rush is clear and concise in his message. As Obama’s policies show themselves to lean towards socialism, as Patrick J. Buchanan noted in his March 4th article ‘On the road to socialism? We’re already there!’ Limbaugh has no problem wishing failure upon the President.
The fact that the Obama administration has reacted to Limbaugh in the way that it has proves that the administration think he’s dangerous. So dangerous that White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel took time to speak of him on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” stating that “…it's our desire that the Republicans would work with us and try to be constructive rather than adopt a philosophy of somebody like Rush Limbaugh who is praying for failure.'
So dangerous, in fact, the White House spokesman Robert Gibbs laid out the following challenge to the media;
“(Ask Republicans) whether they agree with what Rush Limbaugh said .... in wishing and hoping for economic failure in this country.”
Democrats Begin Anti-Rush Media Campaign
Now, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has a website devoted to Rush, pointing him out to be the leader of the Republican Party. Paul Begala would not admit to CNN’s Anderson Cooper that he, Rahm Emanuel, and James Carville have had strategy sessions where they discuss how to attack Limbaugh.
CNN's Anderson Cooper asked Paul Begala about his input to the Obama Administration, as Cooper noted that Begala, Carville, and Emanuel are all close friends. Begala dodged the question, the Cooper was more direct, indicating he needed an answer to the question. Begala's response was evasive;
"Well you'd have to ask Rahm what prompts him to do anything...we're very close friends," Begala stated when pressed by CNN's Anderson Cooper. "But I don't keep notes of these things, I keep private conversations private...I don't know what you mean by concerted effort."
McCarthyism Not Far Away
Have we returned to McCarthyism? Is the next step a crowded committee asking people “Have you now or have you ever been in agreement with Rush Limbaugh?” This administration seems to bristle at anyone who doesn’t get along with their agenda, using the bully pulpit to call out (by name) folks such as Rush, Fox’s Sean Hannity, MSNBC's Jim Cramer, and CNBC’s Rick Santelli, all detractors of Obama’s economic policies.
Someone needs to remind President Obama of President Truman’s statement that “"In a free country, we punish men for the crimes they commit, but never for the opinions they have." By allowing this current media circus to continue, Obama is giving his approval and validity to it. With a country and economy in shambles, is this the best “change” Obama has to offer?
Forget Change, Here's The New Slogan
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Chapter One: FOX NEWS
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