More F-ing R-Word Controversy

RUSH: Bill O’Reilly had Sarah Palin on last night and would not let go of this ‘retard’ business. We got two sound bites. O’Reilly said, ‘I want to give you a chance to clarify something. You called for Rahm Emanuel to actually step aside because he used ‘F-ing retard’ and then Rush Limbaugh said it. He was talking about political correctness. That was Mr. Emanuel, I think it was.’ No, it wasn’t, Bill. You’re misinformed. By the way, I saw this last night. Bill read an e-mail at the end of his program from one of his ‘folks,’ and one of his ‘folks’ said, ‘Look, Bernie Goldberg says ‘lamestream media.’ You ought to realize that Laura Ingraham and Rush Limbaugh invented that term. I just want to give a shout out to Bernie Goldberg.’ I have never used ‘lamestream media.’ I didn’t create that. I don’t know if Laura did but I had nothing to do with it. Mine’s been Drive-By or Punk Media or State-Controlled, whatever. But I never called them the ‘lamestream media,’ — and I never use the ‘F-ing R-word’ syndrome until Rahm Emanuel did it for express purpose of pointing out, ‘This is how those people really talk. We’re the ones that get tarred and feathered with talking that way when we don’t,’ and I’m just trying to ram it down the media’s throat because you people on the left are the ones with the trash mouths. You’re the ones that have no respect for people that are ‘not as good as you.’ So ‘F-ing retard’ is what they think of all of us. I was just trying to highlight that. So here’s Sarah Palin response.

PALIN: Rahm Emanuel — who represents the most powerful man, the leader of our free world — called a group of people whom he disagreed with ‘F-ing retards.’ It’s quite inappropriate, and on my Facebook I said there, too, ‘I don’t think he should be part of our president’s inner circle, making decisions that affect every single one of us.’ He’s given our president some very bad advice on a whole realm of different areas — and as for Rush Limbaugh, no. I believe that it was after Rahm Emanuel said it that Rush Limbaugh — using satire, not calling a group of people ‘F-ing retards,’ but using, yes, the R-word. And I said that, ‘Come on, let’s all grow up and let’s not call each other names because it certainly kind of invalidates what our argument’s all about when we start calling each other names.’

RUSH: That wasn’t good enough for O’Reilly, had to ask the question again for the ‘folks’ to make sure the ‘folks’ understood her answer. Here’s what he said.

O’REILLY: Okay, but just to be clear, you didn’t come down on Mr. Limbaugh because you felt that, eh, uh, uh, ah… What? He didn’t have any ill intent in w-w-what he said or w-w-why didn’t you come down on him a little harder?

PALIN: As I have explained he was using satire using the R-word so he could bring to light what it was that Rahm Emanuel was calling other people.

RUSH: And not just Rahm Emanuel but all of those elitist… (sigh) I’m glad I caught myself with the next word. (interruption) It was not the R-word. It was the T-word. These people talk like this all the time. They are the most condescending, the most arrogant — and they talk about people like that all the time. (interruption) Now, this is funny. The staff is in there trying to think what the T-word is. (laughing) You want me to create a picture so that you might be able to understand what the T-word is? Doesn’t that kind of help you? If I have to create a picture, it doesn’t tell you? Okay. (clearing throat) Let’s see. Picture to convey what I almost said that I’m now characterizing as the T-word, because that’s what these people are. So imagine yourself in a swimming pool with a lot of people in there. You come up for air and floating by your face is a Tootsie Roll bar.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Jerry in Long Island, I’m glad you called, sir. You’re next on the Rush Limbaugh program.

CALLER: Hey, Rush!

RUSH: There you are. Hi, Jerry.

CALLER: Hey, buddy, listen, man, I’ve been a listener since the early nineties ever since that Readers Digest article about you years ago. I don’t know, my dad was a big conservative and he passed away in 1990, and I said to myself, ‘What am I going to do now for information?’

RUSH: Wow.

CALLER: About a year later I found you.

RUSH: Well, God bless your dad and you.

CALLER: Let me tell you something, I’m a huge fan, I’ve been listening — I’m a contractor here on Long Island and I got the AM on all the time when I’m putting tiles down, all day.

RUSH: I appreciate it. Thank you very much.

CALLER: And I’m glad that you’re okay, you had that little scare when you were in Hawaii, and I’m so glad you’re okay. That was tough news to hear at first, you’re like a family member even though you never met me and I just want you to know how much you’re appreciated.

RUSH: Thank you. Thank you very, very, very much.

CALLER: And the reason I’m calling is about O’Reilly. I didn’t like the way O’Reilly was coaxing Sarah to talk bad about you. I mean I don’t appreciate that. I like the Fox channel but I don’t appreciate when O’Reilly does stuff like this especially against you, because, let’s face it, if it wasn’t for Rush Limbaugh there would be no Fox channel. Cal Thomas said it last year and I totally agree.

RUSH: Well, I appreciate your support on these kinds of things, Jerry. I really do. But I understand why it happens. And I think you do, too.

CALLER: I do understand but, Rush, these people have to give you the respect that is due to you.

RUSH: Look, it’s what I was talking about earlier, Jerry, exactly what I was talking about, everybody out there is trying to be the go-to guy, they want to be perceived as the leader, they want to be the one the media talks about whenever something X is said, that’s the person that said it. This is why I don’t like all these competing statements out there with all these different conservative groups because it’s a competition to see who can be the leader and who can be the smartest guy in the room rather than advancing an agenda. And that’s what’s necessary right now is advancing an agenda with a simple understanding of what the agenda is, not an argument about who the smartest guy, the most powerful person in the room is, ’cause we all know who that is anyway.

CALLER: Absolutely. I know who it is, too. That’s why I listen, bro.

RUSH: Thank you, Jerry. (laughing) I appreciate it very much.