RUSH: Will in Batavia, Illinois, it’s great to have you on the EIB Network. Hello.
CALLER: Rush, earlier you said that that the Republicans are operating out of fear of losing this Hispanic vote or immigrant vote. I think that that stops short of the point. Either they’re fearful of losing this vote, or conversely, they’re not fearful of losing the vote of their base. You know, how can they operate like that? I suspect they feel that the base is going to forget.
RUSH: It’s a good question. One of the things they’re doing is looking at fundraising, and they see right now that the Republican National Committee is far outpacing the Democrat National Committee on fundraising. But they also have a little bit of hubris about this. They tell themselves when it comes down to the actual November in election and they go into the voting booth and it’s Hillary Clinton versus whoever our nominee is, that there’s no way their base is going to turn against them. They really do not believe the base will, even looking at the results of 2006, because they’ve got themselves believing that was about Iraq and not about themselves and their lack of conservative performance. So the one thing that they misjudge, and they go through this every cycle, and I’ve been talking on the phone about it to Republicans since I’ve been hosting this show in Sacramento in 1984. They will not show up. They may not show up and vote for Democrats, but they will stay home if they are that are agitated. The Republicans risk that happening again in 2008 with all this.
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RUSH: I don’t want to get too hung up here on the problems in the Republican Party. They are real but the Democrats are not sailing on smooth glass out there. They have their own problems. They’ve got big problems with their base, the anti-war base, very, very upset the Democrats have let ’em down and surrendered to surrender, retreated from retreat, not putting a definite date certain for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq, and not only that, the Democrats, Pelosi and these people, everything they do and say is alienating more and more mainstream Americans at the same time. The media just doesn’t do stories on this. It’s like this thing we had last week from this guy David Bauder at the Associated Press talking about the Drive-By Media had indeed focused far more attention on Democrat presidential candidates than Republican presidential candidates. But there was no bias involved, no, no, no, no, no, no, because Rush Limbaugh was talking about Democrats more, too. Well, big difference, Mr. Bauder, the Drive-Bys, when they report on the Democrats, they do it in a fawning, supportive, let’s give ’em some help and advice sort of way. When I focus on the Democrats, it is to hold them accountable.
The same thing when we talk about the Republicans out here. I found it fascinating they decided to compare me with the Drive-By Media and essentially proclaim that I am equal time, that I am balance. Now, people have said to me, it happened over the weekend on the golf course. Golf, golf, golf, golf, golf this weekend, and somebody said, ‘You really think an 80% chance Mrs. Clinton’s the next president?’ I said, ‘I’m sorry, I have to say so. Republicans aren’t on the field right now.’ More than that, though, this, of course, assuming she gets nomination. But do you realize that parties, political parties holding the White House for three terms is really, really, really, really, really rare? When George H. W. Bush extended Reagan’s two terms, that was — I mean you can count ’em on one hand in the last 50 years where these kinds of things happen. Throw out FDR, of course. But if you look at it from the historical perspective, that you have to factor in as well too. Regardless if the Democrats win in ’08, they’re digging their grave, folks, for later on down the road. The more they win, the more confident they get that they could be honest about their agenda, and their agenda, if they get the power to implement it, is going to really screw things up so that will help to hasten their demise, but it’s going to be tough sledding in the process, in the interim. White Stone, New York, this is Matthew. You’re next. I appreciate your waiting.
CALLER: Yes. Hi, Rush.
RUSH: Hi.
CALLER: What I wanted to say Rush, this immigration bill, I think the burden is going to be carried by our children, our grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
RUSH: No kidding. Absolutely right.
CALLER: They’re the ones who are going to have to pay a 70% tax rate in order to support the Social Security payments of these uneducated boobs that we’re letting in.
RUSH: Well, it’s not just the tax payments and the tax rates they’re going to face, they’re going to face a country that potentially, in terms of the traditions and institutions that their parents and grandparents lived in, is disintegrating and being changed.
CALLER: Absolutely.
RUSH: But they’re not going to put up with a 70% tax rate. They will not put up with it. At some point people end up saying, ‘Enough, I’m not paying this. Why go to work if my tax rate is going to be 70%? Not my top marginal rate, but if my tax rate is 70%, why in the world go to work?’ They’re going to want to get on the end of the wagon. They’re going to get in the wagon that’s being pulled by those who will work.
CALLER: And I will also say to you, Rush, if I may —
RUSH: Tax rates have been high. The top marginal rate when Kennedy was around was 90%, but that was on the last dollars you had to be earning. Nobody ever reported that kind of income, so nobody ever paid 90% of the last dollars. It was a sliding scale. It was ninety — I think 70, and then it went on a whole bunch of tax brackets back then. When Reagan took office, it was 70%. And when he left office the top marginal rate was 28. And of course look what’s happened to revenue generation since all that happened? But it’s academic because people aren’t going to pay, young workers — somebody, if you’re right, that your children and grandchildren are going to be profoundly impacted by this. They’re going to be the ones that will fix it, demand change, or what have you. Just hope it’s not too late. What was it you were going to say? I didn’t mean to interrupt you.
CALLER: I would also submit that if this bill does go through as written, I don’t see what impact the 2008 elections are going to have. What difference does it make who runs or who wins? If this bill goes through, our children’s future for the most part is gone. What difference does the 2008 elections make?
RUSH: Well, that’s not the way to look at it. I understand your point. That’s really why all the politicos want to hustle this through and get it done so that by the ’08 election it’s not something being debated. It would be really great if this ended up being part of the presidential debate. If somebody could just put the brakes on this long enough that it was part of the presidential debate, Republicans and Democrats have to explain to the American people how they think about this thing, and it doesn’t get signed into law before 2008, then that would be ideal. That’s how things are supposed to happen here, rather than be railroaded through under cover of darkness as a result of negotiations in a back room. But you’re right, if it gets signed into law the only way it’s going to affect things ’08 is Republican voters probably will just sit it out and say to hell with it, what do we have to lose now?