Our political Quote of the Day comes from political maven Craig Crawford, on Rush Limbaugh’s increasingly insulting polemics surrounding Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown University student who has defended birth control:
You almost have to wonder whether the Republican Party has forgotten women have the right to vote.
As Senate GOPers tried in vain to let employers deny insurance coverage for contraceptives (and just about anything else they don’t like), party icon Rush Limbaugh kept up his attack on Sandra Fluke, the Georgetown University law student he called a “slut” for defending birth control.
In another sign of Limbaugh’s hold on Republicans, their silence is deafening in the face of his latest madness.
Even by Limbaugh’s wretched standards, this time maybe he has gone too far for his own good.
But I’d be genuinely surprised if Limbaugh faces any consequences:
1. His show makes a ton of money for locals and his syndication company.
2. He is the de facto spiritual leader of today’s Republican Party.
3. His listeners, many conservatives, and many conservatives on the Internet will defend everything he says and find a way to defend it.
But the GOP could face consequences: each time the powerful millionaire Rush Limbaugh hurls a new personal insult that goes all over the countryaimed a woman who is a college student, it is adding to the narrative that the Democrats have sought to develop that there is a “War on Women” being waged against women — a war far more real than the “War Against Christmas” that some conservatives warn about each holiday season.
Republicans who come out too strongly against Limbaugh will be battered back in line by either criticism or by being shunned. There are two kinds of RINOS these days (1) moderate Republicans (2) Republicans who criticize Rush Limbaugh.
The fact is:
–If a Don Imus said it he’d get in trouble. OOPS! He got fired from his MSNBC show for something not quite the same but he only said an offending comment one time. Limbaugh seemingly is gleeful in coming back each day with another zinger that his listeners may cheer but may disgust women and some independent voters.
–If a liberal talker like Ed Schultz said something like it, he’d be suspended, fired or have to apologize. OOPS! He did once and he was off the air for a while and apologized.
There are radio standards and consequences. And there is Limbaugh with his own set of standards and (no) consequences. But here’s betting the Dems make use of this and Republicans may find that it will add to the tapestry of a narrative that Democrats are creating — and Republicans will face consequences from women voters.
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.