RUSH: Now, we got Oprah Winfrey, for crying out loud, and people are starting to ask the question that I have been asking about The Oprah for I don’t know how long.

I have three different stories about this. The first one is from Glenn Beck’s website, The Blaze: “Billionaire Media Maven Oprah Encourages White People to Admit that They are Racist in Bizarre Video — Oprah Winfrey said on video that white privilege and whiteness give white people a leg up over people of color in all situations. In a recent seminar about what it means to be white, the self-made billionaire told white people that they’re racist even when they might not realize that they are racist.”

And her white guests agreed with her, of course. “In a recent episode of ‘The Oprah Conversation,’ Winfrey and NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho spoke to several white guests who admitted their racism. During the episode — titled ‘Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man: Part 1’ — Winfrey said, ‘There are white people who are not as powerful as the system of white people –‘” because somebody in the audience said, what do you mean? There’s plenty of poor white people, plenty of white people that have no power. What are you talking about, The Oprah?

And so she had to admit, oh, yeah, well, there are white people who are not as powerful, but “the caste system that has been put in place –” We don’t have a caste system. How many people even know what that is? Caste system is India. The thing about a Caste system is if you’re born to it, that’s how you die. There is no upward mobility. If you’re born in poverty, that’s the rest of your life, for all intents and purposes. By design, you don’t move up. We don’t have a caste system, what the hell is she talking about?

This country is defined by people who came from nothing, like she did. How in the world did she do it with so much white privilege and so much racism? Who in the world screwed up and let The Oprah become a billionaire? Which one of you white people made that mistake? Was it one of the King brothers, her first syndicator? Who was it? Somebody really goofed up big-time allowing The Oprah to become a billionaire. And not just a billionaire but one of the most powerful people in the country.

So there are white people not as powerful as the system of white people, but they still, “no matter where they are on the rung, or the ladder of success, they still have their whiteness,” which gives them a leg up. Whites have a leg up. You still have your whiteness. That’s what the term white privilege is. It means that whiteness still gives you an advantage no matter. It’s the fundamental issue.

So here we have a billionaire black woman, The Oprah, encouraging white people to admit that they’re racist in a video. And now The Oprah has a new book in her book club, and she’s promoting this all over Apple, Apple News, The Oprah book club. And get this, in partnership with Apple, The Oprah is unveiling the newest selection for Oprah’s book club, “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents, by Isabel Wilkerson.”

So The Oprah read this book about the caste system that supposedly exists in the United States. And now she’s out there talking about the caste system. We do not have one. But it doesn’t matter. This Isabel Wilkerson says we do, so I guess we do. “Publisher Penguin Random House calls ‘Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents’ a masterful portrait of the unspoken caste system that has shaped America. Through an immersive, deeply researched narrative and stories about real people, Wilkerson explores how America has been defined by a rigid hierarchy of human rankings throughout its history and even today.”

Well, then how the hell did this babe get her book published? Who screwed this up? If there is this white caste system that doesn’t allow black people, how did this woman get her book published, and how is she out there doing book appearances to promote it? And how in the world did The Oprah find out about the book to make it her Book of the Month Club selection?

The Oprah said that this book, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent “might be the most important book I’ve ever chosen for my book club.” The Oprah said that this book “provides a new way -” get this now, folks, look at me. I want you to hear this. This book “provides a new way of seeing racial inequality, giving rise to countless aha moments and helping us truly understand America as it is now and how we hope it will be.”

So a new way of looking at, a new way of identifying, a new way of seeing racial inequality. Why would they need a new way? Maybe the term racism, racist is falling by the wayside? Maybe ’cause people are tired of it? Like I think people are worn out on hurricane forecasts. I think people’s emotions over — every one of them is a catastrophe. Every one of them is gonna destroy your house. Every one of them is gonna kill your kids. Every one of them is gonna flood you out. Every one of them is gonna make sure the grocery store has got nothing in it. Every one of them is gonna ruin your car.

None of that ever happens. People are worn out. The emotional reservoir is empty. And I think there’s so many people who are racists and there’s so much racism, and America so sucks and America is so mean, America’s so evil, they need a new way to explain how bad America is. So now America has a caste system.

Isabel Wilkerson says she was honored and thrilled that The Oprah had chosen her book. Oh, Lordy, isn’t it such an exciting day. We have an American caste system now. It’s a new way of explaining how black people don’t have a chance. Except, of course, for The Oprah. And except, of course, pick your successful black person. They’re all over the place. I guess we need some exemptions.

So there’s a white caste system. You white people have a leg up no matter how poor, no matter how powerless, no matter how ineffective, no matter how stupid, dumb, and hayseed you are, you still have more power than anybody else.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: This is Kerry, Charleston, South Carolina. Welcome. Great to have you here. Hello.

CALLER: Hey, Rush. How are you?

RUSH: I’m doing great. Thank you very much.

CALLER: Love your show. I was just calling about the part about Oprah and, you know, when you used to drive around and figure out —

RUSH: Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

CALLER: — and that’s exactly what I have been doing my whole life, is doing the same thing. I have always been — well, my family was, “if you’re born poor, you’re gonna die poor,” that kind of upbringing I had. And I lived with Democrats, screaming Democrats —

RUSH: Wait, wait, wait. I lost you.

CALLER: Sorry.

RUSH: What did you say about living poor, dying poor?

CALLER: When you’re born poor, you’re gonna die poor.

RUSH: Who said that?

CALLER: Isn’t that what Oprah was saying, you brought that up in the same kind of Oprah comment? You had a term for it, and I can’t remember what you —

RUSH: The caste system of India is that way. And she chose an author who’s written a book calling what we have in America a caste system.

CALLER: Right. And that’s what I grew up with. In a traditional American home, that’s what I was brought up with, that if you’re born poor, you’re gonna die poor. Screaming Democrats.

RUSH: That’s what your family taught you?

CALLER: Yes. Yep. My whole life. They’re still saying it. My aunt’s 87 years old —

RUSH: Your family Democrats?

CALLER: Oh, yeah. Screaming Democrats. You think Democrats are screaming now? I grew up — I’m 65. I grew up with screaming — my parents would scream —

RUSH: Well, wait. Are you poor? Are you still poor?

CALLER: Well, no, ’cause I met my husband who grew up on a dairy farm —

RUSH: Oh, so you married up. You married a guy with the others.

CALLER: And we just looked at each other one day and said, “If they can do it, we can do it.” My husband has his own business. I have my own business. He’s got employees. We are in real estate. We have seven rental properties we bought. And everybody in our family thinks we are crazy.

RUSH: Okay. But wait. The thing about Oprah, Oprah is basing this entirely on race. Your family believed you’re born poor, you stay poor because they were Democrats, and that’s what their party told ’em. And the party told them the Republicans are your problem. The Republicans are gonna keep you poor. That’s why you gotta vote for us.

What Oprah is saying is that it is white people who are keeping black people poor, and they never have a chance to change. That’s why she chose this book calling America now a caste system because racism doesn’t cut it anymore. The term racism, the allegation of racism or the term racist, people have been called that now for 50 years. It’s kind of lost its impact.

So a new term. The caste system. Meaning if you’re born one way, that’s it. And if you’re black, it’s really it. You really don’t have a chance because white people are using all the power they’ve got to keep you down, except you’re not supposed to look at Oprah when you see any of this. You’re not supposed to see an overweight African-American woman billionaire. You’re not supposed to see Oprah when she starts talking about how black people have no chance. You’re not supposed to see Bob Johnson, the Black Entertainment Network. You’re not supposed to see any of these examples. You know, it’s hideous, what Oprah is attempting to teach people here.

BREAK TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Upper Peninsula, Michigan, this is Anita. I’m glad you called. It’s great to have you with us today. Hi.

CALLER: Hey, Rush, thanks for taking my call. I’m really thrilled to be on.

RUSH: Thank you.

CALLER: I just want to talk about Oprah Winfrey. I really think that she’s doing a disservice to people over time, successful people. (pause) I got it all wrong. A disservice to people of color. There are so many successful people of color in every aspect of our economy. But yet she overlooks that and she focuses on the negative, saying you can’t be successful unless you blame others.

RUSH: You know what the interesting thing about this is that this is totally out of character. Isn’t Oprah known as a “you can do anything you want” kind of person? Isn’t she known as somebody that uplifts people personally and professionally, that one of her schticks is, you don’t know how good you are, you don’t know what you’re capable of. Now here she comes along and basically, in hyping a book for her book club, is basically telling these same people, “You don’t got a prayer. You don’t got a chance because of white privilege.”

CALLER: Hm-hm. Exactly. And I don’t understand it, ’cause I used to really like her in the beginning. And then after she started getting political, then it start to turn —

RUSH: Wait a minute.

CALLER: — and just like —

RUSH: Wait a minute. When she started getting — when did that happen?

CALLER: I could see it when Obama was running.

RUSH: You think that’s when The Oprah first got political is when she get in bed with the Obamas and their presidential campaign?

CALLER: Well, that’s when I noticed it the most.

RUSH: Well, you know, that is fascinating, ’cause to me, Oprah Winfrey has been political from the day her syndicated show went on the air, but you’re indicating that a lot of people didn’t even think of Oprah as being in the political world or having political reasonings, ties, whatever, and that would have added to her legitimacy, in their minds.

CALLER: That’s true.

RUSH: I’ve thought Oprah was a Democrat Party liberal from the get-go. I’ve never thought she was anything but that. I’m not arguing with you. I think your perception — and actually, I know a lot of women like you loved the woman, loved her show. This is why when I encountered that, I said, how in the world can people run around talk about what a mean-spirited, racist country this is when the wealthiest and one of the most powerful by virtue of the American people investing in her, one of the most powerful people in the country be an African-American woman? Where is white privilege? Where is all this racism?

And I had people say, “You can’t say it that way.” I said, “Why not? If we’re being told how racist and sexist and all that we are, there ought not be an Oprah Winfrey and she ought not be popular.” And let’s not forget something. White women made up the vast majority of her audience. She would not be a billionaire without ’em. She wouldn’t have a large enough audience without white women and yet running around now claiming that there’s a white caste system that relegates blacks to inferior status about which they can change nothing. You’re right. It’s a disservice to everybody who ever invested in her.