What Limbaugh said about Obama

(See Paul Mulshine’s correction, below.)

Here is what Rush Limbaugh actually said in the statement that was represented by Limbaugh’s enemies as “I want Obama to fail”:

Obama is trying to implement a liberal agenda. I am not a liberal, and I think liberalism is bad for the country. Therefore, I hope Obama fails in his attempt to implement it.

This was the entirely unobjectionable remark that the media and the left presented as an outrageous, unpatriotic attack on the president. The discussion is at a blog called The Other McCain (I don’t know what that means, since the blogger doesn’t give his name). The article includes some good observations, like this:

Few things infuriate me so much as the cringing defensiveness of Republicans who think they can concede every premise of the liberal syllogism and yet expect voters to come to some other conclusion than “Vote Democrat.” Too many Republicans have that cowardly punk reflex where, whenever there’s a fight, their first concern is for their own safety, rather than trying to win the fight. So when they saw George Allen under assault for “macaca,” too many Republicans were silent and did not stand up to denounce the unfair and untrue accusations of racism against him.

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David B. writes:

The “Other McCain” you mention is a journalist named Robert Stacy McCain. He has some paleoconservative leanings. R. Stacy McCain used to work for the Washington Times, and at least once appeared at a John Randolph Club meeting in 1999.

Paul Mulshine writes:

What you’re quoting is Limbaugh’s explanation of what he said. Here’s what he really said.

OK, I’ll send you a response, but I don’t need 400 words. I need four: I hope he fails.” … See, here’s the point: everybody thinks it’s outrageous to say. Look, even my staff: “Oh, you can’t do that.” Why not? Why is it any different, what’s new, what is unfair about my saying I hope liberalism fails? Liberalism is our problem. Liberalism is what’s gotten us dangerously close to the precipice here … I would be honored if the Drive-By Media headlined me all day long: “Limbaugh: I Hope Obama fails.”

Not that it’s such a big deal. What was a big deal was when he got the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence confused in that CPAC speech. But the audience there is way too clueless to notice that sort of thing.

Anyway, Limbaugh did indeed say “I hope he fails,” though the Democrats took it out of context.

Posted by Lawrence Auster at March 30, 2009 09:45 AM | Send