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Did Trump Walk Back on "Bush Lied"?
Rush Limbaugh.com ^ | February 19, 2016 | Rush Limbaugh

Posted on 02/19/2016 2:19:39 PM PST by Kaslin

BEGIN TRANSCRIPT

RUSH: Now, remember when that happened in the Saturday night debate, a lot of people were shocked watching this. I immediately evolved a theory to explain it. Here you have the Republican front-runner -- and let's review. The Republican front-runner defended Planned Parenthood. "A great organization that does great things for women's health." It's almost a cliche!

It's what left-wing, Planned Parenthood defenders say.

They're an abortion mill!

They are an abortion factory!

The lion's share of their so-called "funding," their income, comes from performing abortion. They don't do mammograms, for example. The idea that Planned Parenthood is involved in women's health is largely a PR smokescreen to cover up the fact that they're an abortion factory. Well, Mr. Trump came out and said, "Planned Parenthood, they do great things," and that he didn't want to defund them because they do "great things for women's health." That's the Republican front-runner. I sat up when I heard this.

I said, "Whoa! Not even Romney said that. McCain hasn't even said that. What's this?" Then, as the debate went on, Mr. Trump accused Bush of lying about Iraq. They knew there weren't any WMD in there, and they still went to war anyway. "They knew," Trump said. "They knew." Trump said that he opposed the war in Iraq and that Bush was lying about that and lying about 9/11, that Bush didn't keep us safe, that the Twin Towers fell when Bush was in the White House. And he did that while assaulting Jeb, going after Jeb.

But, nevertheless, I said, "What is this? This is the first time I've heard any of this," and then it hit me. Well, it's an open primary, and in South Carolina, Democrats and independents can cross over and vote. I theorized what Trump was trying to get here was get some of those votes, because we had reports that Cruz was gaining ground. Internal polling data showed Cruz was two points behind. If that internal polling existed in the Bush campaign, Trump campaign knew it, too. So it was one of two things... Either Donald wanted to go get these additional voters one of two reasons.

Either to stave off what was happening with Cruz, or to just amass more and more votes to just hammer that final nail in the coffin and just be done with this and just win with a slam dunk. And then commentators on TV took me to task. They said, "No, Rush! Trump's not that diabolical, he speaks from the heart." I said, "There's nothing 'diabolical' about it. It's political strategy. All I'm saying is Trump is not surrounded by idiots. He's got some political pros in his organization and it could be well they strategized to do this."

Because it's not often that you hear the Republican front-runner anywhere defend Planned Parenthood and destroy a revered former Republican president. Bush is revered in South Carolina with 83% approval. You just don't hear that. So there had to be a reason. And then Trump yesterday -- or maybe two nights ago -- now when he's on MSNBC during that town hall, admitted he's going to get crossover votes. He was going to get Democrats and independents. I said, "A ha! My theory was right on the money! That's exactly what they were doing. That's why Trump said that."

Then there were a couple of additional things, such as Trump saying that he's going to rewrite the electoral map because of so many people -- so many crossovers in other states -- are gonna end up supporting him that Wisconsin is going to be in play, Pennsylvania is going to be in play, Michigan is going to be in play. And then last night, Donald Trump... Well, let me just read to you from the Wall Street Journal: "Donald Trump on Thursday appeared to try to walk back his claims that the administration of former President George W. Bush lied about the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq to justify the war.

"During a town hall-style event hosted by CNN, when the Republican front-runner was asked about the comments he made during last weekend's GOP debate, Mr. Trump said: 'I'm not talking about lying, I'm not talking about not lying. Nobody really knows why we went into Iraq.' He added. 'Bottom line: there were no weapons of mass destruction. ... Whether he lied or not, he went into Iraq,' Mr. Trump said. 'It was a horrible decision.'" And so the Wall Street Journal and others in the Drive-By Media are now trying to say that Trump is walking it back.

Now, if Trump is walking it back, there goes my theory. Why walk it back if you're trying to attract Democrat crossover votes tomorrow in the South Carolina primary? Maybe you think you've already done it and you've succeeded. You got your message out. You can make a show and play at walking it back here to maintain your Republican vote. I still could be right about this, is the bottom line. Now, they think they have caught Trump in another... I don't know what you'd call it. Flip-flop?

Because apparently Mr. Trump is saying (and you probably heard it) that he opposed the war in Iraq always forever, and people in the media said, "That's great, but we can't find any quotes. We can't find any evidence of you saying that." Trump said, "That's okay, you shouldn't. I wasn't in politics back then. I was in business. I'm a businessman back then. I wasn't being quoted for things I said as a businessman. Of course you wouldn't. But I just want to tell you: I opposed the Iraq war." But somebody found a tape of Trump on Howard Stern back in 2002.

Stern said to Trump, "Are you in favor of invading Iraq?" and Trump said, "Yeah, I guess so. I wish the first time it was done correctly." Which is an excellent point, by the way. If... do you heard what happened in Gulf War One? We won that war in 2-1/2 days. That was the Arnold Schwarzenegger -- I'm sorry, the Norman Schwarzkopf victory. You remember what happened with that? We had the Iraqi Army on the run. They were in full retreat. The Republican Guard and the "elite" troops, they were on their way back to Baghdad.

Schwarzkopf wanted to wipe them out. He just wanted to end it. Go all the way back to Baghdad, get Saddam, and be done with Iraq. Colin Powell said, "No. No, no, Mr. President, Mr. Bush. Don't do it! You will look like you are using excessive force, unnecessary force. The war is over.

The war is won and besides," said General Powell, "Look, the UN mandate authorizing the use of force does not include getting Saddam. It just says get Iraq out of Kuwait and recapture the oil wells for Kuwait that Saddam took," and eventually set on fire.

That happened to be true.

The United Nations resolution that George H.W. Bush put together did not include regime change in Iraq, did not include taking Saddam out. But Schwarzkopf said, a la Patton, "What the hell are we stopping for? Let's just keep going! Rroot the guy out and let's be done with this forever." Colin Powell said, 'Nope, nope. The optics won't look good." And they weren't. The optics were the Iraqi Army were on the run, surrendering every day on TV, weaving white flags. They were shoeless, they were shirtless and they were on the road back to Baghdad and Colin Powell said, "You can't continue this!

"You have to just end this and let them get back home," and that's what we did. And Saddam survived to once again start threatening and bellowing about weapons of mass destruction and gave us reason to go back in. Ancient history. But nevertheless, Trump is right when he says, "I wish the first time it was done correctly." What he means by that is that we'd just kept going and taken Saddam out. But the point is that in 2002 he did say he was for invading Iraq. So there's... I don't know if it's a flip-flop, but people found evidence contrary to what he's been saying.

END TRANSCRIPT


TOPICS: Editorial; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 2016issues; bush43; bushlied; nevermind; rush; rushtranscript; trump
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To: C. Edmund Wright

We’ll find out

Pretty quickly. I have trump winning in s Carolina by the MOE or slightly more and the same in Nevada on Tuesday


61 posted on 02/19/2016 11:28:07 PM PST by xzins (Have YOU Donated to the Freep-a-Thon? https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: xzins

so you can then enjoy your Trump Care mandate - which will complete your Donald Trump man crush.

enjoy.......socialism is okay as long as we call it trumpalism.


62 posted on 02/20/2016 5:02:30 AM PST by C. Edmund Wright (WTF? How Karl Rove and the Establishment Lost...Again (Amazon Best Seller))
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To: xzins

By the way, Trump winning SC doesn’t mean you aren’t gullible and fooled...it just means you have a lot of company.

I mean, Obama got 70 million votes twice.....so by your own metric he is superior to Donald. And The Koch Brothers and George Soros and Michael Bloomberg are all far superior businessmen to Trump - so by that metric all of them would be better choice.

Dude, you need to get off your “who” obsession and start asking “why” and “how” about a few things. Tiny minds obsess over people, great minds over ideas. Which shoe fits?


63 posted on 02/20/2016 5:04:18 AM PST by C. Edmund Wright (WTF? How Karl Rove and the Establishment Lost...Again (Amazon Best Seller))
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To: C. Edmund Wright; xzins
There IS a conservative case for Trump.

He's in the drivers seat right now, it's been his race to win or lose for some time.

I understand why someone would prefer Cruz, but going scorched earth on Trump, who after today may be the likely nominee in waiting is hardly helpful.

Our biggest enemy is the evil party and whoever they will try to fool us with this time. Let's not pave the way for their victory, because if they win this one. It's over.

64 posted on 02/20/2016 5:07:52 AM PST by Lakeshark
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To: Lakeshark; C. Edmund Wright

Conservative purists are out of touch with reality. Take trade, for example. The purists have pushed their free trade ideology for years to the destruction of our middle class and manufacturing base. And they want more of it because their religious text book puts it at the top of the list of graces bestowed by purist conservatism. Ignore the reality that such a beast as a free market simply does not exist. Ignore foreign money policy, obstructionism, and outright bigotry. Let us destroy our power and wealth for their stupid blind Faith in their purist conservative ideology.
UPC - Unrealistic Purist Conservatism

They follow their UPC god wherever he leads.


65 posted on 02/20/2016 5:52:09 AM PST by xzins (Have YOU Donated to the Freep-a-Thon? https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: xzins; C. Edmund Wright
I've had my own business since Jimmy Carter came into power.

My first ever vote was for Reagan. Those first two votes I was proud to make. He was the best president in his century, his policies brought America back from the abyss, and formed a boom for almost thirty years.

He fashioned my thinking on trade, along with Milton Friedman.

Xzins, I do understand there is a lot of truth to your post, but I don't hold the old Dick Gephardt phrase of Fair Trade as being correct.

I also don't lump Trump in with that phrase, although he uses it.

I think Trump will do some good things in the economy and with trade, and we will see if he measures up to Reagan.

He might, he just might. We shall see.

66 posted on 02/20/2016 5:59:31 AM PST by Lakeshark
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To: xzins; Lakeshark
Conservative purists are out of touch with reality.

I stopped reading right there, because frankly that's straw bullshit sir. Straw bullshit. For God sakes, many of the people pushing your liberal boy are the same ones nit picking Cruz over his imperfections. And fine, go ahead and be Bernie Sanders on Trade if you want to....you don't understand anything about economics, which you have admitted in the past and are demonstrating now.

Lake, there's a vast amount of econ ignorance on "our" side. Sad. It will be our undoing.

67 posted on 02/20/2016 6:30:43 AM PST by C. Edmund Wright (WTF? How Karl Rove and the Establishment Lost...Again (Amazon Best Seller))
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To: C. Edmund Wright; Lakeshark

Your god of the church of UPC is what’s bullshit.

Look at the state of this nation. They’ve brought us to ruin, and they want more of the same.

You are the witchdoctors of politics prescribing the equivalent of eye of newt and toe of frog. And we are trillions in debt, unsecure on every front, and crumbling before our own eyes, and you of the UPC church want more of this same offering to your god.


68 posted on 02/20/2016 6:39:13 AM PST by xzins (Have YOU Donated to the Freep-a-Thon? https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: C. Edmund Wright; xzins
Xzins is a fine and thoughtful poster.

I didn't stop there, I replied to him. I believe he will keep his opinion, but will think about what I said and where I'm coming from.

He and I disagree on a few Trump things (this one not as much as the Bush lied stuff), but I respect his opinion.

He's a strong conservative, and rarely goes off on others, always good for a conversation that has value. He and I agree on well over 90% of conservative positions, as do you and I, CEW.

Just my 2 cents.

69 posted on 02/20/2016 6:39:34 AM PST by Lakeshark
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To: Lakeshark

that was all true until 6-7 months ago. That’s why it’s so disappointing...like El Rushbo, he has jettisoned all he stood for for years.


70 posted on 02/20/2016 6:43:50 AM PST by C. Edmund Wright (WTF? How Karl Rove and the Establishment Lost...Again (Amazon Best Seller))
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To: xzins; C. Edmund Wright
Free trade is a good thing. It's the foundation of capitalism and freedom.

I appreciated Reagan's position on it, and it's NOT BS.

The ruination of the budget did not come from free traders per say, but those who back stabbed and allowed the other side to get away with increasing spending for so many years.

There IS a side to so called free trade that coddles illegals and wants no borders, and no American culture. That's the BS part.

71 posted on 02/20/2016 6:44:48 AM PST by Lakeshark
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To: xzins; Lakeshark

who the hell is “they?”

Liberals like Trump. But you can’t see it.

WTF is the church of the UPC?

More straw bullshit from you.

Lake, please notice the dissembling and unraveling.


72 posted on 02/20/2016 6:44:56 AM PST by C. Edmund Wright (WTF? How Karl Rove and the Establishment Lost...Again (Amazon Best Seller))
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To: Lakeshark; C. Edmund Wright

Free trade is not the foundation of capitalism. Self interest is the foundation of capitalism. And this crap sandwich called free trade (or fair trade, it’s kissing cousin) is simply a way for those behind the scenes to deal for their own self interest and not that of the nation.

The nation’s SELF-INTEREST is far more important than any UPC doctrine on ‘free trade’.

Free Trade does not exist, lake.

Self interest does. Those other countries operate on self-interest and we operate on pie-in-the-sky.

Sounds like CEW must be a priest of the UPC church. This really discombobulates his religious text.


73 posted on 02/20/2016 6:49:23 AM PST by xzins (Have YOU Donated to the Freep-a-Thon? https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: Lakeshark

Free trade and open borders are NOT the same thing. Not at all.

in fact, most who support open borders OPPOSE free trade....altho some support both.

It’s been shown that high tariffs cost many more jobs than they save - and those they save they save by perverting the market. Now open borders costs jobs by perverting the labor market as well. Thus I am against BOTH perversions of the market.


74 posted on 02/20/2016 6:50:21 AM PST by C. Edmund Wright (WTF? How Karl Rove and the Establishment Lost...Again (Amazon Best Seller))
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To: C. Edmund Wright; xzins
I find the scorched earth stuff disappointing.

It's from both sides.

Barring some anti miracle, sooner than later, one of the two, Trump or Cruz will win this thing, we will see tonight when the vote is done.

Trump has some good points on the trade issue, I think he will change the direction of the economy back towards the free market.

I'm not giving up yet, none of us should. I'm just hoping Marco doesn't gain from all this, and I'm really giddy that no other GOPe candidate has any traction.

The rebellion is winning, but I do think we need to stop the scorched earth stuff.

75 posted on 02/20/2016 6:50:31 AM PST by Lakeshark
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To: xzins

define the UPC or STFU


76 posted on 02/20/2016 6:50:55 AM PST by C. Edmund Wright (WTF? How Karl Rove and the Establishment Lost...Again (Amazon Best Seller))
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To: Lakeshark

hard to stop that scorched earth stuff when people just wont listen!


77 posted on 02/20/2016 6:52:42 AM PST by going hot (Happiness is a Momma Deuce)
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To: C. Edmund Wright

You said you refused to read the post in which it appeared, so I invite you to pay for the wall Mexico.


78 posted on 02/20/2016 6:52:48 AM PST by xzins (Have YOU Donated to the Freep-a-Thon? https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: C. Edmund Wright; xzins
Free trade and open borders are NOT the same thing. Not at all.

I absolutely agree.

Free Trade does not exist, lake. Self interest does. Those other countries operate on self-interest and we operate on pie-in-the-sky.

There are some semantics here to be cleared up. The freedom to trade our time for a better life is extremely important concept. It's NOT BS. When I hire someone to do a job for a price, or I do a job for a price, it's a free exchange, a free will trade.

I understand there are some poorly run governmental forced trades, currency manipulation, and just plain bad management, but dumping the baby out with the bath water is not a good thing.

My business is in the wild world of construction, it is overly regulated, but it's plenty free, a great example of free trade. People freely pay me to do a job. I trade my time for their hard earned money and have to earn their approval by doing a good job.

79 posted on 02/20/2016 6:59:51 AM PST by Lakeshark
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To: going hot
hard to stop that scorched earth stuff when people just wont listen!

LOL. Well done sir (or ma'am).

80 posted on 02/20/2016 7:01:01 AM PST by Lakeshark
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