Mike Huckabee takes aim at Rush Limbaugh

politico ^ | April 7, 2012 | DYLAN BYERS

[upchuck]

On Monday, former Arkansas governor and one-time Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee will launch a three-hour radio program on almost 200 stations across the country, going voice-to-voice with Limbaugh in the noon-to-3 p.m. time slot, Monday through Friday.

Cumulus Media, which owns and operates the new program, is already pitching Huckabee to listeners and advertisers as the “safe alternative” to a man who has recently found himself under weeks of intense fire - not for the first time - and who some believe could be vulnerable to a challenge from someone offering a kinder, gentler conservative voice.

“Our tagline is, ‘More conversation, less confrontation’,” Huckabee told POLITICO. “I’m going to treat every guest with respect and civility. Nobody is going to come on and get into a shouting match with me. That’s just not my style.”

Making a direct comparison with Limbaugh, John Dickey, the co-COO of Cumulus Media, adds, “This is going to be safer from a commercial standpoint, and more respectful from a listener’s perspective. I think that environment has been sorely lacking in talk radio.”

While representatives of “The Rush Limbaugh Show,” a Clear Channel property, and its syndicator, Premiere Networks, agree Huckabee will, in fact, offer a “safer” alternative, they strongly reject any suggestion that he poses a threat to Limbaugh’s audience and enormous influence. In their eyes, Huckabee is just the latest in a long line of would-be competitors who have never been able to measure up.

[Big Horn]

I can’t stand him, to me he is not likeable. fox could do better then him.

[Coldwater Creek]

Mark left with a mutual agreement. He's not soft on liberals. I have listened to Mark Davis off and on even before he left Memphis for Dallas.

A snotty little twerp, Ben Ferguson is replacing him for now. He has a local show in Memphis, and a national weekend show that includes WBAP.

[DaveyB]

I wish Huck success and hope that his voice becomes more consistent with conservative claim. Rush always said “come on in, the water is warm”. The more voices the better, the more conservative the better.

[muleskinner]

Say, isn’t that John Candy?

[Invincibly Ignorant]

So now we have 3 RINO’s on radio? Bennett, Medved and Huckabee. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Invincibly Ignorant]

Perhaps he could think of himself as a scholar and talk about education half the time. Oh wait we already have one of those. :-)

[Sloth]

However I listen to him enough to feel safe in saying I do not ever remember him getting into a "shouting match" with a guest.

In the entire time I've listened to Rush, I can recall only ever hearing one "guest" and that was the Vice President of the United States (Cheney). Rush simply doesn't do the guest interview thing.

[Dawgreg]

LOL....a great comparison!

[redhead]

"Huckabee, for people as dumb as Delbert in ‘Oh Brother Where Art Thou’."

You mean Delmar?

[JPG]

Will Huckabee pickup where Larry King left off?

"Little Rock, AR, you're on with Congresswoman Debbie Wassermann-Schultz, Hello."

[stephenjohnbanker]

Hucksterbee....upchucklebee.....

[Buckeye McFrog]

This is going to be safer from a commercial standpoint, and more respectful from a listener’s perspective.

Michael Medved already has a corner on that market.

[stephenjohnbanker]

In 6 months, Huck will..

1) fold

2) change his time slot to midnight : )

[Do Not Make Fun Of His Ears]

“Our tagline is, ‘More conversation, less confrontation’,” Huckabee told POLITICO. “I’m going to treat every guest with respect and civility. Nobody is going to come on and get into a shouting match with me. That’s just not my style.”

---

Typical of people who never listen to Rush, yet feel free to criticize him based on the lies of his critics.

When is Gomer Pyle going to just go away???

[allmendream]

Dat be da one! ;)

[SnuffaBolshevik]

Is he going to be on Cumulus Media or the Cooking Channel?

[Nevermore]

Huck, God bless him, is wasting his time.
Half of Rush's popularity (like Mark Levin) is his bombastic nature, and that he's not afraid to stick a liberal in the eye with their own stupidity. It's irreverent, but it is fun (in reasonable doses). Trying to "counter" that with a "kinder, gentler" conservative is missing the point of Rush's show entirely!

Fact is, there already is a gentler, more serious - but still staunchly conservative - alternative to Rush in the person of Dennis Prager (or Medved, Romney-support notwithstanding).
If you're wanting more serious, but still very incisive, conservative talk, you really cannot do better than Dennis, IMO.
But if you want to laugh at liberals, Rush is King.

[mombonn]

Can’t stand to watch the huckster on Saturday nights, can’t imagine listening for 3 hours during the day.

[CaptainPhilFan]

Ahahahahahah!!!!!
This headline alone made me laugh harder
than all the answers to RetSignman’s apology post!

Good luck, Huck! You’re brave or deluded.

[righttackle44]

They've got a very interesting marketing strategy in Arizona. Put him on very small Country and Western stations in very small towns. I love the C&W folks, but I don't listen to the music. AND, I can't even find a station that will stream it so I can hear the program.

My guess is that, in our state, he has a listening audience of many hundreds--certainly not many thousands. Or, if the Country and Western folks are irritated at him for interrupting the music, he may have an audience of many dozens.