RUSH: We move on to Phillipsburg, New Jersey. This is Freda. Hey, Freda, how are you?
CALLER: Oh, I’m doing just fine, Rush. I’m so happy to speak to you. I have a remark to make. It’s regarding the ‘lipstick on a pig’ remark by Obama. Now, I heard this morning on one of the cable networks, that Mr. Burton, who I believe is Obama’s press secretary, submitted a written statement, and I saw it on TV, and at the end of the statement it said something like McCain was asked what honor meant to him, and they say that McCain could not answer what honor meant to him. Now, that was in response to the lipstick remark. I find it ridiculous and appalling that they will make a big deal about — or associate McCain and honor. And if there’s anybody on earth that we know that is an honorable person, it is definitely McCain.
RUSH: That’s exactly right. It’s a great example of how the Obama campaign is flailing around, throwing it up against the wall hoping something sticks. Now, what happened was that McCain had done an interview with somebody, I guess it was TIME Magazine, and they asked him to define honor. And McCain got a little testy, as he sometimes does, and he said, (doing McCain impression) ‘It’s in my books, read my books! I’m not going to sit here and define it, it’s in my books, read my books.’ So that got reported, and then Bill Burton, the campaign spokesman for Obama issued the following statement. ‘It is shameful and downright perverse for the McCain campaign to use a bill that was written to protect young children from sexual predators as a recycled and discredited political attack against the father of two young girls, a position that his friend Mitt Romney also holds. Last week John McCain told TIME Magazine he couldn’t define what honor was. Now we know why.’ And the reason they say McCain’s got no honor is because of this attack on Obama supposedly wanting to teach sex education to kindergarteners. He did! He voted for it!
The Obama campaign is lying through its teeth here trying to cover this up. This is why there are all kinds of holes in the Obama story that they don’t want to tell themselves. When somebody else tries to tell these stories, they’re going to go out and they’re going to attack people. My guess is, just exactly as you said, Freda, when you start attacking John McCain’s honor, I think 40 million Americans watched John McCain’s speech, and I’m guessing they think not only he understands the meaning of honor and he is the meaning of honor, that he personifies it. McCain walked the walk, he doesn’t have to talk the talk. That’s for people who are guessing what honor might be. So I think it’s just an example of how they’re just flailing away out there, folks. It’s just funny to watch. I’m having the best time with this. It can change on a dime, obviously. But you know why I like this? Because the conventional wisdom is always wrong, and the notion that the Democrats in the media put out that they are the kings and that 80% of the country agrees with them, and that their candidates are infallible, and that they are in touch with the American people and that everybody is just practically willing to bow down and kiss the earth to have Democrats running the country again, and there’s no truth to that.
I love these people who have this arrogant, condescending way about them, getting a comeuppance. I love it when reality slaps arrogant, condescending people upside the head. It always does at some point in time, and right now it is happening to the Democrats. The very last things they expected to happen are happening. Just like the Wellstone memorial and countless other examples that I could give you. They thought the Wellstone memorial was going to relate to 80% of the country and they were going to be swept to a big, big legislative victory in 2002 and retake the House and the Senate. It didn’t happen. It hurt them. Just as this whole campaign that Obama’s running now is hurting the Democrats. Willie Brown’s got it right. They’re on defense and there’s nothing they can do to turn this around because their candidate cannot get tough on the issues he supports. How do you get tough on no new energy? How do you get tough on raising taxes? How do you sound mad about bringing down college tuition when you have no intention of doing it? So they’re kind of stuck. About all they can do is come up with clever ads for the guy, but they run the risk every time he goes out there without a scripted speech. They’ve got their fingers crossed.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: The truth is, ladies and gentlemen, you can put lipstick on a community organizer but that does not make the community organizer presidential. Hi. Welcome back. Great to have you. You know what this lipstick thing shows? It’s just one of many recent examples of how the media has lost the gatekeeper image that they used to have. You know, in the old days, when the media had their monopoly, if they didn’t want you to see the Obama lipstick comment, you would not know about it. Somebody might write about it, but you would not see it because the only cameras that would have been there would have been ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN — and if they wanted to suppress it, you would have never known about it. But they have lost their gatekeeper status. They have lost the image of standard-setter for what’s right and wrong; what we get to see, what we don’t get to see. Basically their editor, their worldwide national editor role has been obliterated. Even now, when they want to come out and say an ad or a charge is tasteless and is gone too far, it doesn’t matter anymore. Who are they to say that? It used to be that when they said something was something, then something was something, whatever it was. They have lost that, and that, I think, explains one of the reasons why they are so fed up and ticked off as well.
Here’s Harry in Pleasanton, Texas. Hi, Harry. I’m glad you waited. Welcome to the Rush Limbaugh program.
CALLER: Thank you, sir. It is an honor.
RUSH: Thank you.
CALLER: I don’t think it’s right that we criticize Obama for his recent comments. I’d like to tell you why. I believe that all of the candidates for their office should share their wisdom that they have acquired through their life experience. I mean, my goodness, we wouldn’t have, ‘Nothing to fear but fear itself.’ We wouldn’t have, ‘Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.’ Now we have ‘if you put lipstick on a pig.’ It’s still a pig. And, you know, Rush, that’s a true statement. You could put lipstick on a donkey, but it’s still a jackass.
RUSH: Right. You can put lipstick on a community organizer. He’s still a community agitator.
CALLER: And you wrap a donkey in a maverick’s clothes, but it will still act like a donkey — or it will still act like a jackass, right?
RUSH: So what are you saying, that Obama was right? We need to praise him for insight?
CALLER: No, we don’t praise him, but he has a right to share his wisdom with his supporters.
RUSH: Well, when’s he going to start?
CALLER: We all learn from what he says.
RUSH: Oh, come on. That’s not wisdom. That’s a political cliche. When is he gonna start sharing his wisdom with us? I wish he would! I wish the guy would start being honest with us.
CALLER: I think we just saw the depth of his wisdom, Rush. I’m kind of playing with you here.
RUSH: Well, I understand that. A lot of people, by the way, who are very close to me have said, ‘You know what? I think this is just way over the top. I think people are overreacting to this like they all do when you say something, the media, Media Matters, these people all try to make you, gonna run you out of town over something they misinterpret that you’ve said. I think free speech. People should say what they want to be able to do say.’ I agree with that but I love it being turned around on them.
CALLER: (laughing) I do, too. I do, too. The worm always turns.
RUSH: (laughing) Are you calling Obama a worm? Did you just call The Messiah a worm?
CALLER: We’re all worms, and it all turns.
RUSH: (laughing) We’re all worms. All right. Thanks, Harry.
CALLER: You have a good evening. Bye-bye.
RUSH: (laughing) The worm always turns. Barack Obama was just called a worm on the EIB Network, folks!