It isn't "happening" to him at all, he's just trying to sound rational and measured so he can keep his show and the $$$ it gives him. The Rush backlash is nipping at his heels and he needs to do something to keep his show.
The man is an incorrigible lout, he just wants to keep the money rolling from his HBO sweet spot.
Saying one thing that sounds good (broken clocks are right twice daily) doesn't give him amnesty for everything else he's said......
No amnesty from me, just saying, though not likely, even the worse person on the whole planet could change. You never know.