Rush Limbaugh Crosses the Line
by Roy Perdue Though it has been several years since I degraded my intelligence so far as to listen to the Rush Limbaugh show, it was brought to my attention (by a friend from Alabama) last night that Limbaugh has finally crossed the line. Apparently Rush was on another of his many rants about how great Abraham Lincoln was, and how wrong the South was in the conflict commonly called the American Civil War. I listened to Limbaugh a great deal in the late 1990s and up until about 2002. I finally became fed up with his bobble-head attitude that every thing that Bush and the GOP do is holy. Limbaugh has on numerous occasions claimed that those that expose the corruption in the GOP are liberals and working for the Democrats. As John Stossel would say, "Give me a break!" Limbaugh has also stated many times that he would like to see America be taken over by a "conservative" dictatorship, even going so far as to say that he could straighten out the country within two years if he were named the dictator! Not likely El Rushbo. While the world’s most lovable moron was spouting his claims that Lincoln was the greatest leader of mankind, one patriot from Louisiana had had enough, and called Limbaugh on his idiocy. The transcript is available online at RushLimbaugh.com. Limbaugh has kept up his long-standing habit of labeling anyone who disagrees with him as being a "Kook." He places a wide swath of people in this category including, but not limited to: socialists, communists, liberal Democrats, Libertarians, Constitutionalists, people who believe the Southern version of history and Fundamental Christians (the biggest "kooks" of all). The transcript to this conversation was placed in the "From Across The Fruited Plain" category of Limbaugh’s website, and is entitled "Confederate Kook Still Smarts Under Civil War ‘Occupation’." How noble of the lovable little hairball, I mean fur ball! Name-calling is never too low for the great man behind the golden microphone. The patriot from Louisiana immediately called into question Limbaugh’s blatant disregard for the Constitution by praising Lincoln’s tactics in the so-called Civil War. Limbaugh was quick to point out that the Constitution was not, and probably is not, important, that the preservation of the union was. I find that interesting. A man, who claims to love freedom and independence, would rather have a despotic empire as long as the "union" is still intact. When Limbaugh was asked again about the Constitution, he conveniently avoided the question, and like a politician, replied with his own question, not on the same topic of course. Later in the call Rush began to sing Lincoln’s praises once more. Limbaugh even said that Lincoln did some things that he wished Bush would do. Like suspending the writ of habeas corpus, running people out of the country that are opposed to Bush’s policies and wars, and arresting those civilians. Sounds more like El Rushbo is a Nazi to me. Lincoln arrested people in the middle of the night, held them in prison without charge or cause, and never brought them to trial – all so that he could get his way of "preserving the Union." Anyone who thinks that Lincoln was a great president, and the hero of America needs to read Thomas DiLorenzo’s book, The Real Lincoln, and find out the truth about the "Great Emancipator." Lincoln’s Gestapo tactics were reminiscent of King George III, whose tyranny Americans had desperately sought to avoid. Rush Limbaugh has finally crossed the line that should be visible to all Americans, especially Southerners. He is no friend of freedom, liberty, the Constitution or the Bill of Rights! He is fan of tyrants, and a lover of despotism, and should be treated as such. Fellow patriots: whether the intentions are good or not, a dictatorship is still wrong, and always brings tyranny. Below is the transcript: "Confederate Kook Still Smarts Under Civil War Occupation," 12/04/06, rushlimbaugh.com. December 4, 2006 BEGIN TRANSCRIPT RUSH: John in Shreveport, Louisiana. Hello. CALLER: Mr. Rush, don't you think you're being a hypocrite when you're not – when you don't want the Iraqis to decide the problems themselves, especially since Abraham Lincoln took two – two generals named Lincoln [sic –Grant] and Sherman who were responsible for the deaths of 59,000 southern people? And since you hate Confederate heritage that much, don't you think that we should allow the people of Iraq to decide their own fate? RUSH: (Laughing.) Gee. I hate Confederate heritage? CALLER: No kidding. RUSH: On the basis of what do you say that? CALLER: Okay, allow me to quote you from 2001: "The American Civil War was the first conflict in human history to set a people free from the bondage of slavery." Your quote, sir. RUSH: Yeah? CALLER: And that's not – RUSH: Well, the point is, we fought – CALLER: – power – RUSH: Are we going to have this argument, Steve? CALLER: Yes, sir, we are, if you've got the nerve to hold it! RUSH: I'll have this argument with you any time you want. I've been hearing from you guys since I started this show. I know, it's about states' rights, it was about freedom; it was about independence. But it was about preserving the union – and Abraham Lincoln knew that you couldn't preserve an America with the institutions defined by our Constitution if one man was allowed to own another. CALLER: Well, you could not preserve the Constitution as long as you could override it by military power and invasion. RUSH: Well, there was the preservation of the union that was the number one – CALLER: How about the preservation of the Constitution, shouldn't that be predominant? RUSH: Look, you still want to secede? What's your solution? CALLER: We have no choice, we're under occupation now. The thing about it is you still have to lie about Abraham Lincoln to prove your, to make your point. RUSH: I'm not lying about Abraham Lincoln. What do you mean, you're still under occupation? CALLER: Put it this way. The South was not allowed to vote its own way; we're not going to allow Iraq to vote its own government, either. RUSH: But we did. CALLER: Do you think we're really abiding by that? What they voted for, we're trying to subvert it by military occupation. No difference than what they did here for 12 years in Louisiana. You don't think we don't see that? You don't think we don't see you as a hypocrite for what you say about, oh, yeah, preserve the union, but let's never mind, let's take away the vote from those who are the voting citizens – RUSH: I cannot believe this! CALLER: – Constitution! RUSH: I can't believe this. You are taking out your frustrations at having lost the Civil War on me and claiming I'm a hypocrite because of my stance on the Iraq war? CALLER: Yes, sir. RUSH: Which I don't even think you know what it is. CALLER: I don't think you know – I don't think you know who Abraham Lincoln was. RUSH: I certainly know who Abraham Lincoln was. He's one of the greatest presidents in the history of the country. CALLER: Who said that – RUSH: And it wasn't because he defeated the south. It was because he preserved the union. CALLER: He preserved the union by trampling the Constitution! RUSH: He did not trample the Constitution. He suspended habeas corpus. He did do some things I wish Bush would do. CALLER: Like kill 59,000 innocent civilians? RUSH: Are you talking about Sherman's march through Atlanta? CALLER: And – and – and Grant's shelling the city of Vicksburg. Hello? RUSH: It won the war, didn't it? You ever heard of Gettysburg? It won the war and that was the objective. I'll tell you what I wish Bush would do that Lincoln did. Take all these anti-war agitators and send 'em to Canada. Send the National Guard in there. Send Harry Reid over to Baghdad if he's going to be so socially – CALLER: Like that Ohio Congressman Vallandigham, huh? RUSH: Absolutely, like that Ohio congressman, that Democrat that was snatched out of his house and sent down to Jefferson Davis, who also didn't want him. CALLER: Well, at least I got you to acknowledge that. RUSH: Acknowledge what? CALLER: Well, the fact that Lincoln did have his secret police who went into people's houses, pulled them out in the middle of the night, and had them – and had them – RUSH: You know what? I hope before you die you learn to thank God for Abraham Lincoln. CALLER: I hope before you die you learn what a racist and a bigot and a power-hungry maniac he was. RUSH: I'm the racist and the bigot? CALLER: I didn't say you were. I said he was! RUSH: Oh. Abraham Lincoln? How in the world you can call a guy who ended slavery a racist and a bigot? I have heard everything now. Everything, in 22 years of hosting this program, I have heard everything. END TRANSCRIPT
December 13, 2006 Ray Perdue [send him mail] is a history teacher at Carolina Baptist Academy in Reidsville, NC. Copyright © 2006 LewRockwell.com |