Here’s the (in)famous (choose the one that fits your political persuasion) “Rush Is The Leader” TV ad put out by the Democratic activist group Americans United for Change. This ad was reportedly being prepared before the big battle between the powerhouse conservative talk show host and RNC Chair Michael Steele. That battle will probably get the ad even more notice when it starts airing later this week:
Writes The Atlantic’s Marc Ambinder, who (along with others such as Andrew Sullivan writing for that magazine and its blogs) is a daily must-read:
Not only is Rush the leader of the Republican Party, according to the ad, Sarah Palin, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, RNC Chairman Michael Steele, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell are specifically NOT the party’s leaders, at least as indicated by the raucous applause Limbaugh received at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in DC over the weekend. (Limbaugh, it should be noted, is no stranger to Americans United for Change ads–the group has used his “fail” comment since early February to blast Republicans for opposing President Obama’s stimulus.) The ad will air in DC and on national cable as early as Thursday through the end of next week, the group says.
UPDATE:According to US New & World Reports, the GOP’s message to Steele is be quiet about Limbaugh or be fired.
UPDATE II: Peter Dao says Democrats are making a huge mistake by “elevating” Limbaugh.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.