Posted on 03/06/2009 7:10:50 AM PST by Delacon
Not only has Obama’s seconds come out swinging at Rush, but the whole of the lefty blogosphere has joined in on the taking points. Never the sort to do much self-generated thinking, the lefty gab-o-sphere has with relish taken up the banner and run with it. Naturally, the tenor of discussion has fallen off a cliff into the typical guttural guffaws and epithets at which the left excels. From a purported “Assistant Professor in the Practice of International Politics at Columbia University” on Huffington Post to the DailyKossacks, the name calling is piling up.
With his attack on Rush Limbaugh, however, Obama risks a backlash that just might hit him where it hurts: his own credibility.
The “Assistant Professor” I mention above developed the theme that Rush is a “clown” that is beneath the attention of the President of the United States. He went on to claim that should Obama deign to debate Limbaugh the president would help Limbaugh “gain in status” simply by engaging the radio talker. To a certain degree Limbaugh himself agrees with the basic concept of his uplift by Obama.
Before I go on, I find this theme quite amusing. Why? Well, because it’s the same theme that conservatives have employed to explain why a U.S. president shouldn’t engage in “diplomacy” with terrorists and thugs like Ahmadinejad and Osamma bin Laden! It was a claim the left called stupid. Now, all of a sudden, the same argument is the chief argument to use. Only one word describes this situation; hypocrisy.
So, as you may have guessed, I ascribe to this theory. If I were president and an unhinged lefty radio twerp were challenging me to a debate, I would ignore the situation entirely.
However, I would also be insisting that my surrogates do the same. And this is why Obama could easily come out on the losing end of this game he’s playing with Rush Limbaugh. Obama and his administration should have given the Limbaugh theme scant notice. If anything, a brief statement and then silence should have been the tact.
Why could this bite (or byte, as the case may be) Obama? Because he allowed — and probably helped plan — this all out attack on a mere talk radio guy by his White House staff and all the Old Media folks they control. Folks like George Stephenapolous, Paul Begala and James Carville have filled the airwaves with the talking points they’ve been handed. On top of that even Obama’s Chief of Staff and his Press Secretary have engaged the radio talker in verbal attacks.
So, Limbaugh, being the brilliant promoter that he is, issued his debate challenge. And then… and then what? Obama ignores it? After a week of his closest advisors, employees, and all their pals attacking Limbaugh, NOW President Obama pretends that Limbaugh is meaningless?
How does it look to the general, disengaged public when everyone that surrounds a president engages in the same quest to demean a single talk show host, yet than that president pretends the subject isn’t worthy of his time? Doesn’t this confuse the people? After all, if Rush isn’t really worth the president’s time, why is his whole staff getting so exercised over him? Someone in the White House must think Rush is important!
Now add that quixotic reaction to February’s statement by the president that Republicans “just can’t listen to Rush” and carry forward with the people’s business.
It all adds up to Obama’s hypocrisy on the matter. It also adds up to a certain element of fear evinced by Obama. People cannot help but imagine that the president and his staff are afraid of Rush. Both because they are talking about him all the time, but pretending he isn’t important, AND because the president refuses to debate him even after bringing him into the debate.
As I said, this could easily reflect badly on the president all the way around. His opponents will taunt him that he is afraid of a mere radio talker and his supporters will be angry that he gave that same radio guy the time of day.
President Obama is quickly rushing himself into a no win scenario. It is fast coming to a point where Rush Limbaugh wins no matter what. And that right there is funny no matter who you are.
“Once big difference. Bush never went after Olbermann.”
Doesn’t matter. Any president debating an unelected entertainer — and yes Rush is a political entertainer — is a bad idea. Obama can criticize and Rush can hit back. They both have a big microphone.
I’ll work on it this evening or this weekend.
Just picturing it makes me laugh out loud.
bump
“If Bush had done those things, and Olberman challenged him to debate, he would have been a coward not to.”
I guarantee you that if this had happened, Bush would not have debated. And that would have been the right decision.
Exactly why?
Doesn’t matter.
You bet it does. A government and the ruling party, attacking a private citizen for his use of the 1st Amendment, ist chickensh!t if it refuses to debate him.
They have elevated him to the position of opposition leader... so how about a bit bipartisanship?
Exactly. When you get down to brass tacks, Obama was walking around town insulting and belittling Rush. In response, Rush challenged him to a duel in the method of today, an open honest debate. (Like Lincoln!)
Obama the coward did not show.
I did not know that Obama had any credibility. If he cannot take his teleprompter there will be no debate.
Obama’s a coward. And if Bush continually attacked a citizen, and refused to debate him when called on it, he would have been too.
The solution is that if Rush is as beneath him as you claim, the POTUS should just ignre him, and not SAY he is the leader of the opposition.
buk buk buk buk buk
Ba RAAAAACK
Id like to see em duel, WITH a single bullet each. Olbermans wuss and dishonest character would cause him to miss his shot or to be a “no show”. (Like Obama at the McCain debates,,,Obama at the Rush debates,,etc,,,)
Obama knows that he could never win a debate with Rush Limbaugh-—Rush would feed this socilist/liberal muslim to the sharks!!!—The Revolution is Coming!!!
I guarantee he would have, and that is exactly why Bush wouldnt lower himself to attack a news reporter in the first place. You have it exactly backwards.
Nice try, but it's Obama and his minions that are trying to paint Rush as the face and leader of the republican party. Rush didn't make that claim, the democrats did. President Bush never identified some left wing radio twerp as the leader of the democrat party and started to build straw man arguments based upon that. This is entirely a creation of Obama, so it's a little late to suggest Obama should simply ignore it...he should have ignored it in the first place...it is Obama who is displaying hypocrisy.
Hey BAMA, you lost already.
I do like the idea of billboards asking for the debate. This could also be used on the RALLY signs, debate RUSH you fool.
Its also interesting to see the so-called unbiased media run with the White House meme that Rush is the ‘leader of the Republicans’ which is absurd. He is leader of the conservatives, which is vastly different.
there is no recall of a President. The only way is impeachment and Senate removal trial.
Have you ever tried to listen to Obottom try to speak without a teleprompter? It’s literal torture. He can string an entire sentence together. He stutters and stammers and repeats part phrases and words because he CANA’T THINK of what to say. He makes former President Bush sound like a linguistic genius. The guy is a complete failure at absolutely everything. Only thing is is the guy is so dangerous and the people surrounding him are equally dangerous. He’s a complete megalomaniac!! God Help America soon. May those masses of folks that had a suppository of hate toward Pres. Bush shoved up their butts for so long that they were blind, WAKE UP and throw these bums out. It’s the only thing that will save your country. I don’t think any of us have ever witnessed such destruction being done to a nation in such lightning speed. CO
Correction: Make that “he CAN’T” string an entire sentence together. CO
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