RUSH: Great to have you here, as always, Rush Limbaugh, meeting and surpassing almost all of the audience expectations. There’s still some malcontents out there. I just got an e-mail. It’s from a 24/7 subscriber by the name of Lynn, and I think that she works in Treasury Secretary Paulson’s office. She said, ‘Today you are being very annoying. You’ve now spent two hours on New York and their proposed tax increases.’ I have not spent two hours on that, but regardless. ‘We get it. Would you please move on to Caroline Kennedy, or, for that matter, anything else?’ (laughing) I have not lost my place on Caroline Kennedy, by the way. This is Lynn from Edison, New Jersey, a 24/7 subscriber. I understand people being irritated out there.
Let’s do the Caroline Kennedy stuff because I’ve been promising it here since the beginning of the program. There’s controversy here over Senate seats both in Chicago and New York now. Caroline Kennedy has avoided politics most of her life. She has yet to utter a word publicly about her interest in running for Hillary’s seat. She’s not going to have to run for it. Everybody knows you buy these seats. ‘In a sign of the enduring power of the Kennedy mystique, even her secondhand statements of interest have spooked the rest of the crowded field. Before she edged into the picture, Democratic Gov. David Paterson–‘ who, by the way, has raised taxes ridiculously here in New York, in case you haven’t heard, ‘–David Paterson had been considering about a dozen other potential contenders, most prominent among them Kennedy’s former relative by marriage, Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo, the son of Democratic Party icon and former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo, is the state’s attorney general. Others who were said to be interested include Nassau County executive Tom Suozzi and Reps. Kirsten Gillibrand, Carolyn Maloney and Brian Higgins. Then came Kennedy. Suddenly, the others seemed to shrink in stature.’
Representative Jose Serrano from the Bronx — which is where Colin Powell is from — he’s not is vying for the position and he doesn’t want it, but Serrano is sympathetic to his fellow lawmakers who are being eclipsed by Kennedy. Jose Serrano said, ‘What are we, chopped liver?’ Yes, sir, you are. And it’s time you realized it just as the black clergy in Illinois have suddenly awakened and realized what they think is going on in Illinois is that all this is about finding a white person to fill Obama’s seat. That’s what they’re saying in Illinois. This is to keep the Kennedy mystique alive. ”They think, ‘My god, a Kennedy, how do I look like I’m not happy about a Kennedy?” he said,’ meaning, I’m a Democrat, I can’t act like I don’t like this, ”It’s not logical, there’s a lot of emotion in this, emotion about the good ol’ days and the Kennedys and Camelot,” how can we fight that?
‘Still, ever since her cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., confirmed her interest some 10 days ago, she quickly became the top contender even as some criticized her as an amateur and compared her to the Jennifer Lopez of politics.’ That was Gary Ackerman, former Clinton supporter. ‘He said in a radio interview that he didn’t know what Kennedy’s qualifications were ‘except that she has name recognition, but so does J-Lo.’ Kennedy got a boost Tuesday from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who told the local Las Vegas television program Face to Face that he had already called Paterson and told him he liked her for the seat. ‘I think it would be a tremendous thing,’ Reid said. ‘I think Caroline Kennedy would be perfect.” Here is Dingy Harry on the cable news show Face to Face, seven second little bite.
REID: We have a lot of stars from New York: Bobby Kennedy, Hillary Clinton, I think Caroline Kennedy would be perfect.
RUSH: Yeah, lot of ‘stars’ in the Senate. I’ll never forget, do you remember when Andrew Cuomo married Kerry Kennedy? I’ll never forget this. I don’t know what year it was, some time ago, they’ve been divorced for awhile now. They had a couple of children. Folks, I will never forget the media, when it was announced that Kerry Kennedy was going to marry Andrew Cuomo, I mean, it was going to be the second immaculate conception. By the way, did you notice who Dingy Harry left out in his list of ‘stars’ from New York? He said Bobby Kennedy, Hillary Clinton, Caroline Kennedy. He didn’t mention Chuck-U Schumer. Here’s David Paterson on Monday at a press conference about Caroline Kennedy.
PATERSON: She told me she was interested in the position, she realized it was not a campaign, but she was talking to other people because she thought that a number of people she felt should know that she’s interested in the position, she’d like at some point to sit down and tell me what she thinks her qualifications are.
RUSH: Really? Is that gonna matter at the end of the day? What are her qualifications? She’s a dilettante. She’s a debutante. I don’t know the woman, but I have to think that there are some people in the Senate just as unqualified as she is. The difference is they did get elected. Karen Tumulty, TIME Magazine: ‘Is Caroline Kennedy Ready for the Senate?’ Big, long story. I didn’t read it, so I don’t know what Karen Tumulty thinks. I guarantee you, if you were in the Drive-Bys and you say, ‘No, she’s not ready for the Senate,’ you will soon not be respected in the Drive-Bys. Also, Today Show today, this is Reverend Sharpton weighing in.
SHARPTON: To try and act like she’s not qualified because she wasn’t part of the old girl or old boys network in — on Capitol Hill, I think that is what the American public just voted against in November.
RUSH: Yeah, in a way. Well, what he’s saying is, the American people voted for somebody that had no business being elected, they elected somebody with no experience, and Reuters, the AP confirmed this for us on Monday, no experience. And she doesn’t have any, either. Reverend Sharpton is saying a new trend here is in the making, not part of the old girl or old boys network, it’s what the American public just voted for. ‘Cause Obama is part of the old boys network. That’s the whole thing. Al Sharpton here making a racial comment. Here’s Gary Ackerman on December the 8th.
ACKERMAN: I don’t know what Caroline Kennedy’s qualifications are except that she has name recognition, but, you know, so does J. Lo.
RUSH: What is interesting about this to me is the same thing I said earlier about watching what’s going on with Blago’s situation in Illinois. Savor this, because you’ve got Democrats with the long knives out for each other. This normally does not happen. You’ve got Democrats trying to destroy each other. Now, I can tell you what Caroline Kennedy’s qualifications are. Are you interested? You want to hear what they are? She’s JFK’s daughter. She is an Obama team leader and was involved in selecting his vice president. She is a woman. She is rich. She is thin. That’s really important when you’re rich. If she was fat, it would be a problem. But when you’re thin rich, then you are truly sophisticated. She’s not one of these ladies who lunch, and we don’t know about her shopping tendencies, but she’s rich, she’s thin, and of course there is the Camelot legacy. And there is also this. There is the illness of Senator Kennedy. With the illness of Senator Kennedy, I think a lot of Democrats say that the Senate’s not the Senate without a Kennedy in it. So the number-one qualification is her last time, her maiden name. That’s the number one qualification. Here’s Anthony Weiner who was on the Today Show today, he’s not happy.
WEINER: I’m glad she’s decided she’s interested, but this isn’t exactly the kind of job you just submit your resume for.
RUSH: But it most certainly is. Resume and blank check. We all know how this happens. Last night on Fox News Channel, America’s News Headquarters, Democrat strategerist Howard Wolfson said this about Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg.
WOLFSON: I think she’s certainly qualified to be Senator. She’s as qualified as many Senators we’ve elected. I thought those comments comparing her to J. Lo were outrageous, they were inappropriate, they were wrong. Nobody should be doing that. Whether she’ll get appointed is an open question. I don’t know. There are other good people who are interested. But she’s clearly qualified, make no mistake.
RUSH: Wolfson just dissed J. Lo, right? To compare Caroline Kennedy to J. Lo, that’s outrageous? It’s not outrageous. If anything, it’s funny, and the reason it’s funny is ’cause there’s a grain of truth in there. Ackerman was talking about name recognition. Now, the Drive-Bys, if they haven’t heard this, we’re going to go back to September 24th, 1957, NBC’s Look Here. There was a show in 1957 called Look Here, the host was Martin Agronsky, and he interviewed then-senator John Kennedy. Martin Agronsky said, ‘If you were to have a son, would you encourage a political career for him?’
KENNEDY: Yes. And I hope if I had a daughter I might encourage her to play some part. I don’t know — I don’t think this should be confined to men only.
RUSH: Well, that seals the deal, does it not? Because he did have a daughter, and he doesn’t think it should be an old boys club, he’s agreeing with Sharpton here, before he knew there was a Sharpton. But that seals the deal. He had a daughter, wants her in politics, too. When that gets around, it’s a fait accompli.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
Kathy in Asheville, North Carolina, great to have you with us on the EIB Network. Hi.
CALLER: Hi, Rush. Mega dittos, and Merry Christmas.
RUSH: Same to you. Thank you.
CALLER: Happy birthday early. We share a birthday so I know yours is coming up. I have a comment that I believe is rather simple, possibly, and rather obvious, but it concerns —
RUSH: Wait a second. Are you sure you want to waste your call on something simple?
CALLER: Well, I hope you’ll let me make it. I think that in my opinion, the recent comments in the news that the Democrats are making about her, including the comment that she’s a star, has absolutely nothing to do with what qualifications anyone has —
RUSH: About whom are we speaking here? Caroline Kennedy Jr.?
CALLER: Yes, Caroline Kennedy. I don’t think it has anything to do with any qualifications that anyone has for this seat, except just what a candidate can do for the Democratic Party, not what they can do for the American people, and I think that’s two things, who can help them to retain power and retain it the longest, and who can bring in the most money for the party, and I think because of her name and her name only that they therefore consider her to be a star that the American people will —
RUSH: Whoa, whoa, whoa. Very interesting that you bring this up. I’d have to study this issue, but what does she know about raising money? She does run some charitable foundations, she runs around, you know, asks people to give frogs for laboratories in junior high dissections and so forth, that kind of stuff, but raising money at the county fair, running a Senate campaign, what kind of experience does she have doing that?
CALLER: I don’t think she has to have experience. I think she has to have the Kennedy name. I think that’s all it takes.
RUSH: I understand that there’s some sentiment with the illness of Senator Kennedy, Edward Kennedy. I think just like the clergy in Illinois said there must always be a black in the Senate seat that Obama is vacating, there must also likewise be a Kennedy in the US Senate.
CALLER: Well, I think her name recognition alone and the fact that she’s known as a socialite. I thought I had also heard some things in the media —
RUSH: She’s not a socialite, she doesn’t do that. She is a dilettante. There is a difference. She’s not a socialite; she’s not a lady who lunches.
CALLER: Okay, perhaps I’m wrong about that. I guess maybe I’m cynical about the party, the Democratic Party —
RUSH: No, I think you’re right about that, I think you’re right, it’s about power, image, all of the Democrat power, no question about that. It’s just that she’s not that public a person.
CALLER: I don’t know that she has to be in my opinion. You know, the name itself I think unfortunately —
RUSH: No, no —
CALLER: — the American people will just ride right along with that, at least the Democrats in the state of New York would.
RUSH: Oh, the state of New York loves carpetbaggers. I mean at least one of those Senate seats in New York has been held by a carpetbagger ever since Bobby Kennedy. You know, it’s in the Kennedy tradition to carpetbag. Hillary is a carpetbagger.
CALLER: Right.
RUSH: She’s from Illinois. Not Chicago, Park Ridge, by way of Yale, Wellesley, and Arkansas.
CALLER: Right. Well, unfortunately, I don’t think any selection they’re gonna make has anything to do with qualifications to aid the American people. I think it has only to do with those two things.
RUSH: No question about it. So you think it’s automatic she’s gonna get it?
CALLER: No, not necessarily, but I think they’re looking for someone who will do those two things for the party, and that’s the only qualifications anyone needs to have.
RUSH: True. But it really is up to Governor Paterson and what kind of intimidation can be brought to bear on him to make this happen. I’m glad you called out there, Kathy. I’ve been to Asheville, North Carolina. I love visiting the Biltmore estate.
CALLER: Yes, beautiful. We’d love to have you any time.
RUSH: Thanks very much. I appreciate that.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: It is kind of interesting, though, folks, it’s quite illustrative to sit here and have ostensibly a serious conversation about the qualifications of Caroline Kennedy, which are zip, zero, nada. I mean let’s be honest, there are none, in the real sense, and yet, and yet the Drive-Bys spent months, the Democrats telling us Sarah Palin is not qualified, and she’s a governor! She’s been elected to a number of offices.