RUSH: Senator Phil Gramm. You may have heard about this, ladies and gentlemen. Phil Gramm did an interview with the Washington Times, and he is a top economic advisor to Senator McCain. Finally we got some hard-hitting truth from the McCain campaign. Phil Gramm referred to the economic slowdown as a ‘mental recession’ and called the United States a nation of whiners. Mike Allen writing this at Politico.com says that these comments by Phil Gramm ‘could hurt the campaign’s efforts to convince working-class Americans that McCain feels their pain. … Democrats immediately condemned the remarks as ‘callous’ and quickly began working to divert widespread attention to them. … The Democratic National Committee issued a statement titled, ‘Out of Touch Much, Phil.’ A McCain official said that Mr. Gramm was simply saying that we are laying out the economic plan this week, the plan is comprehensive, building immediate near-term relief for Americans hurting today as well as longer-term solutions to get our economy back on track.’
Anyway, McCain has now denounced Phil Gramm. McCain has said, (doing McCain impression) ‘I’m sick and tired of saying all this to these people that work for me, he doesn’t speak for me, he never did.’ That’s what he said. He said Phil Gramm doesn’t speak for him. This is tough love. Look, all he meant by mental recession is that the Drive-Bys have created a negative economic picture far worse than reality. I’ve made it a point to do some studies, I mean these are anecdotal, but last night I tried this, I haven’t done this in a long time, but I flipped around to every baseball game I could find on television, and I was stunned. For the most part 80% occupancy or more in the stands. It takes a lot of gasoline to get there, a lot of ten-dollar hot dogs, five dollars for a thimble of beer. People are still there. I’m not saying that it’s not problematic with four-dollar-plus gasoline and so forth, but the idea that we’re in a recession — we’re not in a recession. And yet all Phil Gramm was saying was that — you know what he was saying? It really comes down to, buck up, with a ‘B,’ buck up, America, buck up! Anybody can hang around and whine and hear a bunch of negative talk and react to it. That’s not who Americans are. But then when we have mothers breaking down into tears when little eight-year-olds go to summer camp, the buck-up message might not be properly understood. Anyway, the Lord Messiah Barack Obama has reacted. This afternoon in Fairfax, Virginia.
OBAMA: Former Senator Phil Gramm said that we’re — we’re merely in a mental recession. That’s what he said. Said we’re in a mental recession. He didn’t say this, but I guess what he meant was, it’s a figment of your imagination, these high gas prices. Senator Gramm then deemed the United States, and I quote, a nation of whiners.
RUSH: Stop the tape a second.
OBAMA: A nation of whiners.
RUSH: Yeah. I’ll tell you why it’s a nation of whiners, because your party is a bunch of whiners. Your party has a patent on whining. All your party does is whine each and every day, from Harry Reid to Nancy Pelosi, whine and moan and complain and accuse. And you do, too, Senator Obama. You don’t care about the high gas price. Here’s the rest of this statement.
OBAMA: This comes after Senator McCain recently admitted that his energy proposals, you know, for the gas tax holiday and the drilling will have mainly, quote, psychological benefits. I want all of you to know that America already has one Dr. Phil. We don’t need another one when it comes to the economy. We need somebody to actually solve the economy. It’s not just a figment of your imagination.
RUSH: What in the — solve the economy? There is no such thing, sir, as solving the economy. You might be well advised to try to understand the economy, and then you would realize that solving it, it’s just another problem, and liberals think they have all the answers.
Birmingham, Alabama, this is David. I’m glad you called, sir, nice to have you on the Rush Limbaugh program.
CALLER: Thank you, Rush. Southern hospitality six-figure income earning, SUV driving, gun carrying dittos to you, sir.
RUSH: Another bitter clinger has called in.
CALLER: Absolutely, and congratulations on the new contract. You’re still underpaid.
RUSH: Thank you sir, very much.
CALLER: Well, thank you. I’m just ready for Senator McCain to go to the closet, find that shoe box he put his cojones in and put ’em back on for a while. You know, the guy’s just becoming a madness wonder. I mean, it’s frustrating. When Obama says something, well, you know, he just wants to mealymouth around about it. Put his foot down, challenge him to some debates, challenge him to stand up in front of his own and not with his string-pullers to talk. He can’t. He’s clueless.
RUSH: He’s challenged him to town hall meetings, but Obama wisely said no.
CALLER: Exactly. He needs to keep challenging him. He needs to keep on and stand up, I mean just like all this terrorist stuff. We’re not going to be attacked as long as Bush is in office.
RUSH: I don’t think you understand this, David. McCain is running an honorable campaign.
CALLER: Honor can have pride to it. I mean act like you got a pair, McCain, if you’re listening. I mean don’t be afraid to stand up. There’s a lot of Americans out there who believe it. I mean it’s scary. I mean part of me almost thinks we’re going to have to endure four years of Obama like we had to endure four years of Carter. You know, as great as Reagan was, Carter made him better.
RUSH: Well, maybe Senator McCain will get around to Obama once he finishes denouncing all his supporters.
CALLER: I hope so. I hope so, but, Rush, thank you so much, keep up the good fight, sir.
RUSH: Thanks, David, very much.