Rush was first a disc jockey; then a political radio host. That combo was responsible for much of his success. He was both an entertainer and an editorialist.
“Rush was first a disc jockey; then a political radio host”
That’s what many Rush fans missed and what all of his imitators lack.
Rush began to disk jockey when he was still in high school in the late ‘60s and he was doing it full time by the ‘70s.
In addition to honing his skills as a humorist and entertainer he made a close study of the technical aspects that make one radio broadcast better than another. He occasionally mentioned them. I don’t think a single one of his imitators even know those techniques exist.
Oddly enough he never registered to vote until 1988. Despite what his career became I don’t think that politics had ever been his consuming interest. He probably picked up his general inclination as a boy around the family dinner table but never made a study of it until he was hired in Sacramento. That’s one reason he was an easy mark for the Bush family to co-opt.