Posted on 03/04/2009 3:18:37 AM PST by Sub-Driver
Inside the Dems' anti-Rush plan By: Jonathan Martin March 4, 2009 04:04 AM EST
Top Democrats believe they have struck political gold by depicting Rush Limbaugh as the new face of the Republican Party, a full-scale effort first hatched by some of the most familiar names in politics and now being guided in part from inside the White House.
The strategy took shape after Democrats included Limbaugh’s name in an October poll and learned their longtime tormentor was deeply unpopular with many Americans. Then the conservative talk-radio host emerged as an unapologetic critic of Barack Obama shortly before his inauguration, when even many Republicans were showering him with praise.
Soon it clicked: Democrats realized they could roll out a new GOP bogeyman for the post-Bush era by turning to an old one in Limbaugh, a polarizing figure since he rose to prominence in the 1990s.
Limbaugh is embracing the line of attack, suggesting a certain symbiosis between him and his political adversaries.
"The Administration is enabling me,” he wrote in an email to POLITICO. “They are expanding my profile, expanding my audience and expanding my influence. An ever larger number of people are now being exposed to the antidote to Obamaism: conservatism, as articulated by me. An ever larger number of people are now exposed to substantive warnings, analysis and criticism of Obama's policies and intentions, a ‘story’ I own because the [mainstream media] is largely the Obama Press Office.”
The bigger, the better, agreed Democrat James Carville. “It’s great for us, great for him, great for the press,” he said of Limbaugh. “The only people he’s not good for are the actual Republicans in Congress.”
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...
Only for the ones who want to remain hunkered down in the bunker.
Cedric, why don’t you wake up?
Why does the GOP not have a leader, any leader at this critical point in time?
Why does Rush have to fill the vacuum at all?
We’re lucky to have Rush—at least he can hold his own with any Democrat, unlike the GOP which excels in folding like a cheap suit at any criticism from the Dems.
What has Rush done so "dangerous"? Critizised the Pretender in Chief? Articulated Conservatism?
The only one doing "dangerous moves" are the Democrats.
This is a strategic blunder.
You could see Alynski’s Rule 12 coming a mile away and Limbaugh's leading you right into the trap.
Don't confuse the GOP with conservative Americans.
Of course, they don't realize that someone with a 4 million listener audience can really have a bad reaction to being attacked, like pointing out the Dihms socialist agenda and keep hammering them with relative impugnity.
I hope they don't stop. As long as they keep their message on Rush, and Rush keeps pointing out the fallacy of this administration and Congress, they can't win. It makes the Dhims look like idiots they are.
As the old saying goes..."Never argue with someone who buys ink by the barrel."
The true conservatives are going to vote for conservatives, regardless of what anybody labels them. Frankly, I haven’t considered myself a Republican for some time as the party has been taken over by RINOs. Indeed, the name no longer stands for anything. In short, I’ll vote conservative and donate to conservatives.
Rush is a brilliant spokesman for conservatives and he has the guts to articulate the conservative philosophy. What we are seeing here is the birth of a new party which is known by its philosophy—The Conservative Party of the United States. We may not have official standing just yet, but we know who we are and we know who we can and will support. Conservatives. (And yes, I deliberately used the term ‘conservative’ multiple times to make my point.)
Tell that to Rush.
I got it straight.
Yes. Rush is going out of his way to explain things. His regular audience did not need those explanations.
Heh heh. Yeah, keep playing that game. Obama was once very popular. Shows you how fast and wildly opinions can swing, doesn't it?
Then the conservative talk-radio host emerged as an unapologetic critic of Barack Obama shortly before his inauguration, when even many Republicans were showering him with praise.
Rush's true crime: not bowing and scraping before Dear Leader.
Yes. The Democrats are giving Rush a gold-plated soapbox to match his golden EIB microphone.
Regarding this recent “controversy” can you name one thing Rush has done “dangerous” or “wrong”?
The Democrats going after Rush is like walking up to a sleeping lion to kick him and shoo him away.
Someone needed to file a FEC lawsuit against the alphabet networks for their no-charge political contributions to the dems in general, and the obama campaign in particular.
The media has gone over from biased reporting to running a propaganda campaign for the dems and obama. The “White House Press Corps” is now run from the White House.
It’s really disgusting.
Mark
Then there’s only one way out of the trap: a direct assault.
We can either throw Limbaugh under the bus; abandon him; join the ridicule; say he isn’t our leader; agree that he’s “incendiary and ugly”; argue that he doesn’t speak for us, after all, he’s only an entertainer; cry uncle and ask the dems to relent.
Is this what you’re advocating, Cedric? If not, please explain exactly how you see us getting out of this “disaster”.
I think there’s another way out. We fight back. We counter by pointing out the obvious: that one man, Rush Limbaugh, is such a thorn in the democrats/Obama’s side, they’ll do anything to shut him up. Argue that as Republicans, we have a right to disagree with any policies we thing hurt the USA. Constantly bring up just how opposed and vicious the democrats were against Pres Bush and his policies, with even Hillary Clinton saying “Dessent was patriotic”. Bring up how we Republicans did not try to shut up Michael Moore, as every American has a right to Free Speech, especially when others don’t like what they say. Tell them trying to shut people up is un-American and wrong. Turn the issue into one of free speech and allowing other opinions to be heard, and just why do the democrats fear one man so much, if they’re so sure he’s a windbag with nothing good to say????
If we do NOT fight back, we will lose.
Maybe Cedric, given past Republican performance on not fighting back, you see disaster because THAT is the likely outcome?
“The last damn thing any organization needs is a defacto leader who has no operational responsibility.”
I guess you think Michael Steele is that leader?
“There are scads of people out there who have never listened to Rush and who take their opinion of him from the mainstream media.”
Exactly. Now, maybe their curiosity will impell them to give an ear and listen to Rush. We should certainly hope so.
Approximately 68% of the voters in this country are conservative or somewhat conservative. If all of them listened to Rush Limbaugh, and thanks to the overly-clever Democrats who hatched this nefarious plan, Rush just might convince 68% of the voters to go out this next election in 2010 and sweep a Repulican controlled Congress back into Washington, D.C.!!!
Rush is the conservative "safety valve". Three hours we get to hear somebody "just like us". Silence him and the pressure will build and build so that conservatives will actually do something -action instead of words. I have personally graduated form "EIB". I am a post Rush radical conservative(if there is such a thing). He did a good job but he could now be a hinderence. Rush is doing the left a favor, and he probably doesn't realize it himself.
The question is what would be that something?
Input?
As with every Democrat tactic it reveals something about their own fears. They know that they are in danger of Pelosi et al defniing Obama and they are desperately trying to deflect. Rs should be pummelling Congress right now but they are gutless.
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