Then just what the hell has all this been about? Rush didn't start it except for saying he hopes Obama's policies fail. And that doesn't justify a personal attack by the president. And if they realize they have nothing to gain (as you say), then why go down this road regardless of what Rush says. After all, you've said he isn't that influential.
True; and so do I. That's a far different matter than what I think Rush's chances would be if Obama actually agreed to a head-to-head debate. I stand by my assertion that Obama would hand him his rear end in that format.
And that doesn't justify a personal attack by the president. And if they realize they have nothing to gain (as you say), then why go down this road regardless of what Rush says.
Actually, it marks Obama as a damned fool for giving traction to Rush's remarks. Had he simply let it go, Rush's comments wouldn't ever have seen the light of day outside his niche audience.
Rush is doing a great job of keeping Obama engaged -- and for the life of me I can't figure out why Obama continues to take the bait, other than to chalk it up to his (Obama's) narcissism.
After all, you've said he isn't that influential.
That's not what I said at all. What I said was, that Rush's show is not suited to rebuilding the intellectual foundations of conservatism. Surely you can see the difference?
On that note, we need to be aware Rush is leading us into dangerous territory -- because we've lost our intellectual foundations, it can be very easy for the MSM to paint Limbaugh's opinions as defining "conservatism." Rush is a tempting target: his publicly-stated opinions are tailored to a talk radio audience, and as such cannot be fully fleshed out. Nor does Rush have either the time or (to be frank) the background to form a deeper conservative philosophy. His opinions, such as they're presented on-air, are little more than strawmen, however well-informed Rush himself might be.
As a result, the MSM doesn't actually have to address conservatism in an intellectually rigorous way -- they need only dispense with Limbaugh's necessarily sketchy statements, which is a far easier thing to do.