Democrats: The Plan to Target Limbaugh

I think Democrats involved in this "plan" to target Rush Limbaugh are underestimating how much influence Limbaugh has. The Politico says, "Top Democrats believe they have struck political gold by depicting Rush Limbaugh as the new face of the Republican Party, a full-scale effort first hatched by some of the most familiar names in politics and now being guided in part from inside the White House."

From inside the White House? Personally, I would hope the Obama Administration has more pressing concerns than the content of Rush Limbaugh's radio show.

"The strategy took shape after Democratic strategists Stanley Greenberg and James Carville included Limbaugh's name in an October poll and learned their longtime tormentor was deeply unpopular with many Americans, especially younger voters."

Who are these Americans? Limbaugh has the most listened to radio show in the country, with somewhere around 30 million listeners (last estimate I heard). That's 10 percent of the population! Sounds pretty popular to me.

"Soon it clicked: Democrats realized they could roll out a new GOP bogeyman for the post-Bush era by turning to an old one in Limbaugh, a polarizing figure since he rose to prominence in the 1990s."

Polarizing? No more than Nancy Pelosi or Harry Reid.

The Politico quotes an email from Limbaugh that says, "The administration is enabling me. They are expanding my profile, expanding my audience and expanding my influence. An ever larger number of people are now being exposed to the antidote to Obamaism: conservatism, as articulated by me. An ever larger number of people are now exposed to substantive warnings, analysis and criticism of Obama's policies and intentions, a 'story' I own because the [mainstream media] is largely the Obama Press Office."

Limbaugh has a point here: the more attention that is drawn to him, the more people will likely listen to what he has to say. They may not agree, but isn't it human nature to tune in to see what all the fuss is about? That means higher ratings for Limbaugh, and more money in his pocket.

The Politico piece spends considerable time talking about Limbaugh's comment that he hopes Obama fails, but I think this whole issue needs to be put in context. Limbaugh is a conservative Republican. Obama is a liberal Democrat. Would anyone really expect Limbaugh to want Obama to succeed? Did Pelosi and Reid want Bush to succeed? This whole thing is ridiculous. It's the nature of politics--two parties with significant ideological differences. Each thinks their vision for America is right, and that the other party's vision is wrong. Why is this such a big deal?

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0309/19596.html