CALLER: Rush, how you doing, buddy?
RUSH: Good, sir. Thank you.
CALLER: Look, I’m confused about something here. You said something Friday, and I don’t want to make you mad about this but I want to ask you if you can tell me on the quote about McNabb isn’t a great quarterback and the media do overrate him because he’s black. That was a quote from somebody, and I don’t know who — I had an argument with somebody here to work about it.
RUSH: You’re having an argument with somebody at work over what I said about McNabb?
CALLER: No, well, you were quoting somebody about it, and it got all blown out of proportion.
RUSH: I don’t know what your argument’s about, but here’s what happened.
CALLER: Okay.
RUSH: It’s the ESPN pregame show. It’s week five of the NFL season. McNabb is not performing well. Everybody’s wondering what’s wrong. In the production meeting prior to the Sunday show I learned they’re going to be discussing what’s wrong with McNabb and what’s wrong with Eagles. It’s going to be two different segments of the show. So I’m listening to these guys, and my job is to object as a fan if I hear something I disagree with. So they’re going on and on and they’re talking about it, and I said, ‘Wait a minute, you guys, I think the problem here is that the defense is not getting enough credit for the Eagles’ performance. The defense are carrying the team. McNabb, I don’t think he’s playing that well. I think McNabb is a little overrated because the media, very socially conscious, the NFL is very socially conscious, they want the black quarterback to do well. I think the media’s got a little prejudice in that regard,’ and all hell broke loose two days later. Nothing happened that day or the next day, but two days later all hell broke loose. So really all I said about McNabb was that I thought he was overrated. What I said about the media was that I think they, as a bunch of social liberal do-gooders, are still interested in a black quarterback doing well, and so they’re willing to overlook the fact that he might not be as good as they want him to be, and, therefore, when they’re wondering what’s wrong and why they’re tearing their hair out, the answer is right in front of their face. That’s what it was. It was a comment primarily about the media.
CALLER: Okay. Okay.
RUSH: Now, that’s from the source. I am the source authority on this. You can take that to wherever you’re having the argument. But I guarantee you whoever you’re having the argument with is not properly informed. Here’s the exact quote for you. ‘Sorry to say this, I don’t think he’s been that good from the get-go. I think what we’ve had here is a little social concern in the NFL. The media has been very desirous a black quarterback do well. There’s a lot of hope invested in McNabb. He got a lot of credit for the performance of the team that he didn’t deserve, the defense carried ’em.’ Bam, that’s what it was, and you would have thought, you would have thought that J. William Fulbright was back filibustering the Civil Rights Act by the way these people reacted to it. That’s all it was. It’s seven years ago and they’re still quoting it and talking about it in most stories about McNabb. So there. You tell ’em that at wherever you’re working.