RUSH: Braden in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Great to have you, sir. Glad you waited. You’re next.

CALLER: Hey, thanks, Rush. We love you out here.

RUSH: Thank you, sir, very much.

CALLER: Listen, aside from Trump’s big rhetoric, he is the perfect establishment candidate, ’cause of his lifelong liberal views. You know, Trump and Cruz are diametrically opposed. Trump has many liberal views, where Cruz has been rock solid forever. You know, the reason Trump said Cruz was a nasty guy this weekend is because he tries to personally destroy every person that goes against him. He’s attacked Levin, he’s attacked Rich Lowry, Jonah Goldberg. He called Michelle Malkin “dumb.” You know, he’s exactly like Obama in that he just wants to destroy personally his opponent.

You know, Megyn Kelly with her bloodiness. You know, I’m scared to death for the country to have another president like that, and I think if Trump asks Cruz to be his vice president, because of Cruz’s principles, he would turn it down. You know, as a matter of fact, I think Trump actually voted for Obama in 2008. You know, he was a registered Democrat for seven years prior to the election of Obama. And in New York, Democrats voted for Obama 91% to 9%. And in 2009 he hailed how great the people were that Obama surrounded himself with. And he’s supposed to go this —

RUSH: Hold it. I’m not gonna deny that, but he was by no means the only one. I mean, half the Republican Party did, too, if not more. And when they picked Eric Holder to be the attorney general, I about puked, as I listened to one Republican conservative intelligentsia member after another praise the choice of Eric Holder. I had to listen to Newt praise the choice of somebody to run the National Security Agency. We were falling all over ourselves after the election. This is very key.

We were falling all over ourselves to praise the new, young president and to make everybody understand that there’s no racism here. “I’m not one! Look, I love Obama.” My only point is, Trump might have done that. He wasn’t alone. There were a lot of people on our side did it for purely personal, calculating reasons. We haven’t had any principled opposition to Obama I can think of since the campaign of 2008. McCain did not even run any opposition to Obama, when you get right down to it. We haven’t had any since this campaign. This is the first time there’s been any.

CALLER: Ted Cruz has, since he got in. And, you know, you didn’t say that when he first got in, that he was a great person. Trump says that he’s got this great judgment, that he’s just so smart. That’s not smart. I’m just a lowly handyman out here trying to make a living, and I knew better than to vote for Obama in 2008. Trump’s this big billionaire, you know, smart guy, and I’m smarter than him.

RUSH: I don’t know who Trump voted for. I do know that people have accused Trump of voting for Obama have apologized for it.

CALLER: Well, let me say this. His proof that — this weekend he said he did not vote for Obama, and his proof of that is that he gave money to McCain and went out to eat with McCain and his wife in 2008 before the election. Well, that doesn’t mean anything, because he also gave money to Harry Reid during the — even during the Tea Party uprising time he gave money to Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer, Anthony Weiner, and — wait for it, wait for it, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

RUSH: I know, but everybody knows this, and they don’t seem to care out there.

CALLER: And I don’t understand. We have to have principles. Trump, he claims to be this hardliner on immigration. You have to be consistent and in 2009 he was promoting how great the DREAM Act was. He s says what he thinks needs to be said to the right person just like you were talking about Liberty University and how he —

RUSH: Yeah, well, we’ve got had to sound bites coming up, too. I’ve got a bunch of those just waiting. In fact, now might be an opportune time since you have transitioned right into it. So, Braden, I appreciate the call.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Okay. Let’s start with sound bite 30. Trump is at Liberty University today, and Fox News carried, what, about 75% of it? Everybody did. They bumped out in time for this program. Trump finished right before this program started, too. All who have proper instincts know that if they’re doing something around noon, except for Obama, you stop, as this program’s about to begin. Trump did. Here’s what he said about the Bible and Christianity. Well, this is not the Christianity quote. This is just the Bible quote. At Liberty University this morning.

TRUMP: I wrote The Art of the Deal, I wrote many best-sellers, like The Art of the Deal, everybody read the — who has read The Art of the Deal in this room? Everybody. I always say — (laughter) — I always say, a deep, deep second to the Bible. The Bible is the best, the Bible. The Bible blows it away. There’s nothing like the Bible. But The Art of the Deal was about — in fact, there are a few of them right over there. But The Art of the Deal was the best-selling business book, and Obama didn’t read it and Kerry didn’t read it. But we can do things with our country that will be so good. But I’ve always used that word, incompetent, they’re incompetent. Now I don’t care anymore. I don’t care.

RUSH: So it’s pure improv. I asked some devout Christians earlier, “Does it bother you when Trump says the Bible blows it away?” “Oh, no, that doesn’t bother us.” I said, “It doesn’t? It doesn’t sound disrespectful, the Bible kills it, the Bible is the best, the Bible blows it away?” No. No. He’s right. Okay. I wouldn’t be surprised if people say, “I don’t like that talk about the Bible. You don’t say the Bible blows it away. You don’t say the Bible kills it.”

See, I think, you know, putting his book second, his audience eats that up. They’re not out there offended at how dare he. And yet people that don’t get this connection, this bond, “Oh, my God, this is outrageous, who could dare compare their book to the Bible? Nobody would ever.” Like David Brooks and that crowd, “Oh, my God, this is horrible, give us somebody in a gray suit and a red tie, give us somebody boring and dull. Oh, this is scary,” is what they say. Now we have other bites from Trump at Liberty University today. Let’s just start with the first one in order. Here we go.

TRUMP: I see it on television. These generals, they get up and they talk on television. They’re being interviewed. I don’t want generals to be interviewed. One of the generals just recently, “Well, what do you think of the ISIS threat?” “Oh, they’re very tough. They’re very –” “Well, can we beat ’em?” “Well, it’s gonna take a long time.” I don’t want that kind of a general. I want a general where we knock the hell out of ’em, fast. (cheers and applause).

RUSH: That applause went on and on and on. We edited it here for purposes of time. But, look, I have to say I agree with this. I’m not crazy about all these retired generals going on TV second-guessing everybody and so forth. Something about it has always made me nervous. I think what’s become of TV news makes me nervous anyway ’cause so much of it just isn’t news. Some of them are good. Don’t misunderstand.

Do you ever see a Supreme Court justice on TV? You never do. Even the retired ones, you do not see them. You do not. It would cheapen what they do. Can you imagine when his term is over, Antonin Scalia going on TV and analyzing the court after he’s gone? You wouldn’t see it. You would never, ever see it. And, as such, the court doesn’t end up being cheapened. I understand the First Amendment, everybody can speak, the need for programming and to fill time. I have to say I think he’s got a point there. This is the silent majority riff that has now become part of the routine.

TRUMP: The press is very dishonest, like the camera trick. I call it the camera trick where they don’t show. So what’s happening and what’s happening in the country is you’re not getting a real picture of the silent majority which Jerry Sr. had something to do, and that’s a phrase you should be really cognizant of, because it is a silent majority but I think I’m gonna up it a little bit ’cause it’s no longer so silent. It’s really a noisy majority. It’s become a noisy majority. People want to see greatness for our country. They want to see things happen. They want to see things happen. And they’re not seeing it.

RUSH: Now, here’s the wall, and Trump’s doubled down on this, too.

TRUMP: Who’s gonna build the wall? Mexico. Everybody knows. I say that, again. They say, “Oh, you can’t build a wall.” So easy, you have no idea. And the reason it’s easy — it is. For me. I just built a 92-story building. I mean, when you build buildings, building a wall, it’s called like give me some prefab plank. Bing. And I gotta make it, but I really — but I really, I have to make it look beautiful. Why? Because someday they’ll name the wall Trump Wall and I gotta have it be.

RUSH: They won’t name it Trump Wall; he will. It’ll be named president Donald J. Trump Wall and Illegal Immigrant Complex or some such thing. And then of course now and then, ladies and gentlemen, just to confuse everybody, he throws me in, number 29.

TRUMP: I started talking about illegal immigration, and boy, did I take it. For two weeks Rush Limbaugh said it’s the most incoming he’s ever seen a human being take, but I didn’t give up, ’cause you can never give up. One of the things I do when I speak about success, and a lot of people ask me to speak about success, where it’s just great. I love speaking about it because I can help people. One of the things I see, you gotta love what you do, but you can never — applies to so many young, incredible people in this room — you can never, ever give up. You can never give up. If you give up, you’re not gonna make it. So I took a lot of incoming, as Rush said, who’s a great guy.

RUSH: Gotta go to the break.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: This is Trump. This is the comments he made on Christianity, speaking today at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. Now, I say that he hasn’t said this before. I don’t really know that. I haven’t seen or heard every Trump appearance. But to me this is news. I had not heard him say these things before.

TRUMP: We’re going to protect Christianity — and I can say that. I don’t have to be politically correct or…

AUDIENCE: (applause and whistles of approval)

TRUMP: We’re going to protect them, you know? And I — I asked Jerry and I asked some of the folks because I hear this is a major theme right here. But 2 Corinthians, right, 2 Corinthians 3:17, that’s the whole ball game. “Where the Spirit of the Lord…” Right? “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty,” and here there is Liberty College, but… Liberty University. But it is so true. … I’m a Protestant; I’m very proud of it. Presbyterian, to be exact. But I’m very proud of it. Very, very proud of it. And we’ve gotta protect, because bad things are happening. Very bad things are happening. And we don’t… I don’t know what it is. We don’t band together, maybe? Other religions, frankly, they’re banding together and they’re using it.

RUSH: Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho. Have you heard him say this stuff before? I haven’t. Again, I’m not saying he hasn’t. I just haven’t heard it. This is his audience, Liberty University, he’s quoting Corinthians 2, 3:17. And he says we gotta protect because bad things are happening, very bad things are happening. And I don’t know what it is, we don’t band together, other religions, frankly, they’re banding together and we’re surrounded, other religions are aligning against us. We gotta protect Christianity.

This is gonna send some people through the roof, particularly in the Drive-Bys.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Cruz is hitting back at Trump for his biblical citation at Liberty University today. Trump said we’re gonna protect Christianity. “I can say that, I don’t have to be politically correct. … Two Corinthians, 3:17, thatÂ’s the whole ballgame! … Is that the one you like?” he asked the audience. The verse, “Now the Lord is that spirit. Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty,” seems to have been Trump’s attempt to ingratiate himself to the audience of religious students. This is from the Politico I’m reading.

“But the crowd tittered, and several of the students audibly corrected him, pointing out that Christians say ‘Second Corinthians,’ not ‘Two Corinthians.’ Rival campaigns noticed the error immediately. CruzÂ’s rapid-response director, Brian Phillips, said, ‘What is Two Corinthians?’ Rubio’s faith outreach director, Eric Teetsel, ‘Two Corinthians? It won’t matter. Nothing seems to matter.'”

They’re just frustrated. Whatever Trump says, it doesn’t matter. Nobody holds his feet to the fire. And then Trump, maybe his comparison between the Bible and The Art of the Deal, saying that the Bible slams it or whatever. “Two Corinthians 3:17, that’s the whole ball game, is that the one you like?” He asked the audience. Is that it, have I got it right, is that it? Not something he likes. Is that what you guys like here, two Corinthians? And the Cruz campaign and Rubio, “Wait a minute, that’s ‘Second Corinthians.’ Every Christian knows that.” That’s their reaction to it.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Some Christians would say, “The second letter to the Corinthians,” not just “II Corinthians.” Ricardo Montalban would say “rich Corinthian leather,” which there never was any of. It was all an advertising gimmick.