Rush is entertainment and I occasionally listen but not that often these days. However when I do, I never forget two things. First, when W was running in 2000 many of us questioned his convservatism. Rush took to the airwaves and assured us that he's met Bush in private and he's a rock ribbed conservative, why he says things that are so far to the right that Rush simply couldnt believe it but he just can't say that stuff in public but you gotta trust Rush on this one, he's a hard core conservative! A little exaggeration there, not much though. We all know at this point that was pure nonsense; either Rush was making it up or he got played. Second, after Bush managed to be so bad in his second term that he lost both the house and the senate Rush expressed relief that he didn't have to carry the GOPe water anymore now that they lost. I actually was pleased to hear it, pleased that he might have had an epiphany and start to fight back at the liberal snakes that took over the GOP, including the Bushes. But alas, his was a momentary lapse, he was right back on the reservation in short order.
Look, the guy is tied in and connected to the establishment. He's jetting to meals with Chuch Schumer and Lindsay Graham and sitting in the luxury boxes of uber liberals. He is a republican at least as much if not more than a conservative. In fact based on his anger and frustration at the 2006 congressional election losses where he admitted he "carried the water" of candidates he considered unworthy, one can argue he's a party loyalist first, principled conservative second. He has carried that GOPe water before and he will again. Recognize that and you can appreciate the entertainment value for what it is.