HANNITY: Hey, Rush. It’s your friend Sean Hannity, and I just want to say congratulations on 20 years of hosting excellence in broadcasting. Now, I know you love golf, Rush. You are the Tiger Woods of our industry, and I know many of us, we owe you a debt of congratulations for paving the way for all of us. Thanks for all you do. We love the program. Here’s to another great 20 years.
RUSH: Well, thank you very much, Sean. He was right about something. We are very good friends, and now in the same stable, so to speak. But yeah, we are celebrating our 20th anniversary here. You all know how I don’t like birthdays. I’m starting to quake in my boots like I know we’re going to play these things in the first break of the first hour. To say a simple thank you seems so insufficient. What are you guys…? I’m sure they’re making snarky comments in there. I can see their facial expressions. (interruption) Mmm-hmm. Mmm-hmm. Yeah, I know, That’s why I said, ‘Just wait until Friday.’ You know, we’re just in the wading pool here today. Yeah, it will start intensifying tomorrow and then reach the crescendo on Friday.
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PAGLIA: Hello, Rush, this is Camille Paglia, a staunch supporter of Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi. Many congratulations on your amazing career as a political analyst and ace broadcaster. You single-handedly saved and revolutionized AM radio.
RUSH: Zowie. Camille Paglia. She is in the tank for Obama. I read her stuff religiously. She does like Pelosi, she likes Obama, and she likes me, too. In fact, I’ll tell you a funny story about Camille Paglia. Shortly after a profile of me by 60 Minutes, I guess a couple years after that, they had an anniversary of their own bash at the Temple of Dendur at the museum on Fifth Avenue, and they invited me to attend. By this time, folks, I was up to speed, so I was suspicious of this. I mean, 60 Minutes had profiled a lot of people, and they wanted me there. They had all their former hosts that no longer work there, plus their current hosts go up and made little speeches and they showed highlights and clips of 60 Minutes from previous episodes, and they showed nothing from mine, which didn’t surprise me. I took a guest, I took the editor of my two books, Judith Regan, and when they finished the presentation that they did and their highlight reel, we went in to dinner, which had been catered in the Temple of Dendur. They seated me at Camille Paglia’s table, because Camille is a famous lesbian and a famous liberal. These guys at 60 Minutes thought that there was going to be fireworks because of their preconceived notions of me.
Steve Kroft, who had done the profile of me, kept circling my table all during dinner. And Andy Rooney kept looking over now and then. I finally figured out what was going on. These people were expecting this table to be thrown upside down by me and expecting me to storm out of there or get into some big fight with Camille Paglia. When Camille Paglia saw me, she demanded I come sit next to her for a while, and we started talking about the First Amendment and free speech, and our table probably had more fun than anybody else that night at the 60 Minutes anniversary party at the Temple of Dendur. Kroft kept walking around looking for the fireworks to break out. I’ve stayed in touch with Camille Paglia ever since, and I send her little jokes. She listens to the program occasionally. She teaches at Philadelphia, the University of the Arts, and I remember there was — I better check my memory to get this, I don’t want to get it half right, but I think her partner was doing — ah, can’t remember what it was. But it involved Clinton and sex. I advised Camille, ‘Do it! Put that display on! Put that display on wherever you’re going to do it, down in the village someplace,’ and she — (interruption) Yeah, I gave her a cigar. I gave her a cigar. Yeah, she’s cool. She’s very smart. She’s very fast and a delight to chat with. But I’ll never forget all these 60 Minutes people expecting fireworks at the Temple of Dendur during their anniversary bash at the museum.
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LOWRY: Rush, it’s Rich Lowry at National Review. I just want to give you the hardiest congratulations. You’ve been an affliction to liberalism for 20 years and to the rest of us, you’ve been an inspiration, a joy, a comfort, an education and a friend. You long ago joined the annals of conservative greats, the defenders of ordered liberty, our civilization’s highest accomplishment. I know how proud Bill Buckley was of you. I know he’s proud even today from his celestial seat. Rush, it’s been an inspired 20 years. Now we expect 20 more. Take care, and God bless.
RUSH: Rich Lowry, the editor of National Review, great bunch of people there. Thanks very much, Rich. I appreciate it more than you can know, everybody who’s offered one of these fine greetings and tributes. As I keep saying, I’m going to sound like a broken record here, but a simple thank you sounds insufficient. Twentieth anniversary week rolls on here at the EIB Network.