The Limbaugh Effect on Clinton’s Texas Win

WSJ ^ | March 6, 2008 | Susan Davis

[fightinJAG]

Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh led a campaign to have his Republican followers in Texas cross party lines and vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton in the state’s open primary last Tuesday. Why? Because Limbaugh thinks Republicans can defeat Clinton in a general election. Plus, watching Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama bloody each other in a nomination fight is pure sport for Limbaugh conservatives.

According to exit polls, Clinton won a notably higher number of Republican voters than she has in past open primary contests. Of the 9% of voters who identified themselves as Republicans in the Democratic Primary, Obama still edged Clinton 53%-46%. However, that margin is significantly slimmer than earlier contests. In Wisconsin’s open primary, for instance, Republicans broke 72%-28% for Obama. Similarly, in Virginia’s open primary, Obama was favored 72%-23%.

Clinton unquestionably secured a Texas victory, but some locals are convinced it was a false win bolstered by dirty politics. Laura Jean Kreissl, an accounting professor at West Texas A&M University, served as an election official in Canyon, Texas on Tuesday. She contacted the Wall Street Journal to report the hijinks she observed at the four precincts that voted at her polling location.

Of the 181 voters she personally dealt with, 70 offered that they were “Rush Limbaugh voters” who were there to cast ballots for Clinton. “I’m here to vote for Hillary Clinton, I want to see the Democratic Party implode,” one voter told Kreissl, she recounted in an interview. “I was just stunned,” she said. “As an election official we can’t say anything. We just jot them down and let them vote.”

[SuziQ]

I object to “teaching” people that it’s okay to view one’s vote as nothing more than a poker chip to play around with.

By the time the Texas primary rolled around, the Republican nominee had already been chosen, so those Republican voters wouldn't have been choosing their own nominee anyway.

[Night Hides Not]

It'd be interesting to hear you interpret the fact that in California, Republicans have a closed primary, and Democrats have an open primary.

A blind squirrel can find an acorn sometimes? LOL!

I guess my complaint is with the national GOP. The first primaries conducted were all open primaries, which worked out to the detriment of conservative candidates.

[fightinJAG]

I think McCain has a chance against either of the Rats. It’s against BOTH the Rats that I think is probably insurmountable.

Why? Because they each increase turnout in ways that no Republican candidate can compete with.

And BOTH candidates on the Rat ticket is exactly what this Rush-stunt will get us. The closer the race, the greater the pressure for the supers to come up with a compromise/consolation prize plan.

Bubba and the Missus ran as co-presidents in 1992. The Missus (and Bubba) and Obama will run as co-presidents in 2008.

Thanks,Rush.

[paleorite]

—It just seemed to me that Rush and Levin were a little too enthusiastic and gleeful in telling us to vote for Hillary Clinton. It seems to me that Rush and Mark Levin don’t hate Hillary Clinton and are not disgusted at the prospect of 8 years of her as president and on TV every day. So why don’t they hate her? Something seems fishy here.-

If you are a “conservative” talk show host, 8 more years of Billary are money in the bank. Big time ratings. Blue = Green etc.

[fightinJAG]

You NEVER assist evil. No good can ever come of it.

Amen.

[fightinJAG]

Whether by design or not, he’s doing a good job it.

He says he is about educating the masses. He’s been teaching some awfully squirrelly and harmful stuff.

[libstripper]

I am glad so many GOP’ers did this b/c it may change the 2012 primaries so that more of them are closed. We are tired of Liberals crossing over and selecting our nominee. When they do that, they view it as acceptable but when we cross over it is a perversion of democracy. Remember, you can’t teach a liberal until their own tactics backfire.

You may be on to something. The DemonRats only decided to get rid of special prosecutors when one of them was turned loose on Slick.

[fightinJAG]

The one subject on which Rush has been consistently wrong over the years is the Hildabeast.

I think it’s because he’s bum on women in general. But anyway.

He said she’d never run for Senate.

He said she’d never run for Senate from NY. She’s never win. She’d never be re-elected. She’d never run for President.

Blah blah blah.

His record on the Beast is abysmal. Why anyone followed him on this is beyond me.

[DesertSapper]

HA HA. Rush wasn't my mentor on this one. My wife, some friends, my brother, and I were all discussing how to ensure the Dem primaries continued at least a week before Rush said anything about it.

I disagree with those who believe Hitlery is more electable than B.Hussein but that's not the point here. My family and friends voted for Hitlery because we want the Dims to continue beating on each other - not because I think she's more "beatable" in the general election.

For those who are whining about the supposed devaluation of our primary votes or the "dirty politics" of cross-party primary votes . . . get over it. It is legal in my state of Texas and we determined it was a good tactic to help ensure a Dem does NOT win in November. You can be assured that a vote for any GOP candidate in Texas this week was definitely a wasted vote as the results were inevitable.

Time will tell if the stomach-turning experience of voting for Hitlery was worth it.

[info_scout]

Neither candidate is landing any hard blows. Obama can't go too negative since he's been touting "a new kind of politics". The worst so far is Obama proxies sheepishly suggesting she release her tax returns. Big deal. He hasn't really hit back. Her attacks are indirect with the CIC readiness issue, but she can't push that too far without exposing the emptiness of her own national security qualifications. They are hardly beating each other up. Plenty of media attention though, while McCain is ignored to the point of becoming irrelevant.

Both candidates are appealing to the Dem base. They are likely to work a deal at some point, and come away united. Meanwhile Dems in states that could go either way in the general are energized and engaged by remaining primaries that would normally be dormant if the nomination had been locked-up.

Any residual hard feelings will be quickly overcome with the usual fear mongering--church burnings, nooses, lynchings, scaring seniors social security, etc. They've got it down to a science.

[fightinJAG]

I agree that politics is a dirty business. I do not agree that it is a game.

IMHO, that is what Rush turned it into-—a game. And I object.

[JohnG45]

You can't possibly be serious about that! Rush, had been scheduled to be off for ages in order to play golf on those two days

And how do you know that?

Are you familiar with his schedule?

[SuziQ]

I haven’t listened to Rush in years, but it seems like his strategy might just have worked. Before this last round of primaries, it looked as though Her Heinous was on the ropes and the officials were calling the fight for Obama. With the wins in Ohio, and pulling as close as she did, with possibly a slight win in Texas, she’s kept her campaign alive. This means that she and Obama will be going at it hammer and tong for the next four months, and it will be WELL publicized. Folks who pay attention to the news will learn a LOT more about these two, and their negatives will continue to rise. This will only reflect well on John McCain, who could well pick up votes from quite a good number of disenchanted Democrats, as well as Independents who would NEVER vote for Her Heinous.

[rurgan]

"If you are a “conservative” talk show host, 8 more years of Billary are money in the bank. Big time ratings. Blue = Green etc."

Yes , good point.

Now Hannity and Rush will get to do their dumb Bill Clinton impressions for 8 more years. They think that is really funny and entertaining. I don't know about other conservatives but 8 years was enough of hearing Bill and Hillary. I don't even want to ever hear the Clintons even in an impression of them and I especially don't want to see them with Hillary as president destroying my beloved capitalism , America and freedom.

[D Rider]

If Republicans want closed primaries, they should demand them and not shut up until they get them. That still doesn’t justify debasing one’s duty to vote.

The concept of open primaries depends on the faith of the good will of all the participants. When that breaks down, one is forced into retaliatory survival mode. This is what you are seeing. And yes, Republicans should take this opportunity to demand closed primaries. Primaries are not intended to be a weapon to be exploited by ones enemies.

[SuziQ]

She is far better positioned to “move to the middle” and cut off McCain's appeal to the middle.

She wouldn't know 'the middle' if it jumped up and bit her in the butt! x42 pulled off the 'I'm in the middle' stunt, but no one would ever believe it of Her Heinous!

[fightinJAG]

Reminds me of the stereotypical scene in movies where the bad guy (usually) gets the good guy on the ropes and, instead of finishing him off then and there, he first starts "monologuing"---describing his plans, his motivations, his methods, etc. in great detail---all the while the should-have-been-victim finds a way to escape AND turn the tables on the perp.

See, e.g., The Incredibles.

[paleorite]

—good tactic to help ensure a Dem does NOT win in November—

You realize, of course, that if by God’s grace a Dem does not win in November, that we get McLame as POTUS. Cliches like “six of one, 1/2 dozen of the other”, “be careful what you wish for” etc. spring to mind. Let’s hope he nominates a young, vigorous real conservative as Veep. This way, if the old fart (oops, I mean America’s favorite POW) “attains Nirvana” into his first term, we may have the President we really want and need. Not holding out much hope though; picking a good conservative would not be “maverick” enough for the old codger.

[fightinJAG]

I don’t care what she thought. That has no bearing on whether the strategy was right or wrong, wise or stupid.

[paleorite]

—Now Hannity and Rush will get to do their dumb Bill Clinton impressions for 8 more years.—

And 8 more years of Paul Shanklin! Yum.