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House GOP Candidate: Nothing I Said Should Be Construed As Criticizing Rush
There really is no dismissing Rush Limbaugh, is there? Earlier today, in the special election for Kirsten Gillibrand's old House seat, Republican candidate Jim Tedisco declared that "Rush Limbaugh is meaningless to me."
Now, Tedisco's campaign has released a statement clarifying what he meant:
"Jim's comments were in response to a question about what voters are asking him about on the campaign trail. So far, the concerns he has been hearing from voters on the campaign trail have been local in nature, such as his support for lower property taxes, fiscal responsibility, and his opponent's appalling support for the AIG bonus loophole. That was his point and any effort to characterize it otherwise is a distortion of the facts."
Late Update: The DCCC's statement ridiculing Tedisco is available after the jump.
Tedisco to Rush Limbaugh: I'm sorry!
Add career Albany politician Jim Tedisco to the list of spineless Republicans who can't stand up to their leader - Rush Limbaugh. Just hours after it was reported that Tedisco said, "Rush Limbaugh is meaningless to me," Tedisco quickly apologized to the de facto Republican leader. Tedisco follows in a long line of Washington Republicans who are too afraid to stand up to Rush Limbaugh.
"It's just like Jim Tedisco, a career Albany politician, to talk tough and then whimper an apology to Rush Limbaugh even though Limbaugh wants President Obama to fail during America's economic crisis," said Jennifer Crider, Communications Director for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "Tedisco once again showed his true colors: he won't stand up to Republican leader Rush Limbaugh, he certainly won't stand up for Upstate families worried about keeping their jobs."
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Josh
Elana
Matt
Eric
Unreal!
March 20, 2009 4:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
It *is* unreal! WELL SAID!
March 20, 2009 10:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
And without missing a beat - http://www.dccc.org/content/sorry
March 20, 2009 4:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Great link. All Republicans should fill one out, just in case.
March 20, 2009 5:23 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh god, somebody help me! Can't stop laughing . . .
March 20, 2009 4:29 PM | Reply | Permalink
Rush is truly the leader of the GOP. His reach has gone into the heartland of NY. Is there nowhere we can be safe from the huge bag of lard and horrid smells?
March 20, 2009 4:31 PM | Reply | Permalink
Why oh why have we allowed the Republicans to try and make AIG the Democrats fault? This is an entirely foreseeable consequence of 30 years of Reaganomics, and we should be making that point every day, instead of trying to defend or explain anything that happened at AIG.
March 20, 2009 4:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oy. And it's not believable, either. "He's meaningless to me" is pretty straitforward and difficult to misconstrue.
Did anyone start an apology clock on this one?
March 20, 2009 5:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
I believe the phrase you are looking for is "hang time," and it looks to be around 13 hours between his comments first being published and his "clarification."
March 20, 2009 7:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
There wasn't time.
March 21, 2009 12:30 AM | Reply | Permalink
Rush is basically the bad guy from Dune.
March 20, 2009 5:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
The floating fat man or Sting?
March 20, 2009 5:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
Limbaugh is quite the floater
March 20, 2009 7:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Must be Vladamir Harkonnen:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Harkonnen
But then, who in the Republican Party is Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feyd-Rautha
In any case, maybe we should rename the Republican Party the House of Harkonnen. Seems fitting.
March 20, 2009 7:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
Bobby Jindal, obviously.
March 21, 2009 6:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
I request that TPM start a public chart, with times and links to actual quotes of every Republican who disses, then apologizes to Limbaugh.
Let's hope that the existence of such a chart creates a line in the sand that dares Rs to step across, ("Be the first in your party to demonstrate independence of thought and spine!") only to have to skulk back again with their tails between their legs.
March 20, 2009 5:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
What on earth gets said to these people, to make them renounce reasonable statements and make public fools of themselves? And by whom?
March 20, 2009 5:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
You have to read the fine print on the Republican voter registration application. The section titled "homage to chickenhawks"
March 20, 2009 7:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
No, seriously.
As a Democrat, I'm delighted to see these people self-destruct politically, but what, exactly, is happening to make them do that?
March 21, 2009 11:00 AM | Reply | Permalink
AIG is much more than just a natural result of Reagonamics. It is the precise result of Republican's insistence that government should not control corporate compensation. Why isn't anyone pointing out that it was the GOP that complained loudest when provisions were recommended to limit this BS?
March 20, 2009 5:41 PM | Reply | Permalink
Rush is the character Jabba the Hut in Star Wars, and all the Republicans in elected office sit at his feet.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jabba_the_Hutt
March 20, 2009 5:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Jabba was an obnoxious fat slob - but not a junkie.
March 20, 2009 7:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Uh-oh. Is he Vladamir Harkonnen or Jabba the Hut?
Jabba: (from Wikki) An evil gangster with an odious mass of greasy, insect ridden flesh and a sadistic love of torture, abusing his many cohorts, and enslaving Princess Leia.
Harkonnen: (from Wikki) ...is so "grossly and immensely fat" that he requires anti-gravity devices known as suspensors to support his weight. As ruthless and cruel as he is intelligent and cunning, the Baron's greatest skill is his talent for the subtle and clever manipulation of others through their weaknesses or his understanding of human nature.
Tough call. Rush, aka, Jabba Harkonnen?
March 20, 2009 8:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
I think your Jabba description is more of a Dick Cheney type.
Either way, its is a good one.
March 21, 2009 8:37 AM | Reply | Permalink
Remember how they complained that ANY limits on corporate compensation was included in the bill?? Read this -- http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/02/cant-forget-the-exec-pay-limits-were-not-last-minute-additions.php
March 20, 2009 5:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Isn't this the same guy who doesn't run the word 'Republican' on his ads? What a coward.
March 20, 2009 5:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey...as ericvsthem notes...the guy had 13 hours of bravery before Boss Hogg had his way with him. So at least he's not a born-coward. But he evidently learns fast.
March 20, 2009 7:48 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is getting to be absurd... aren't these pols embarrassed to be ruled by an obese drug addict with hillbilly call-in show?
March 20, 2009 6:18 PM | Reply | Permalink
It seems strange that hillbillies would be attracted to a chickenhawk addicted to synthetic heroin. Now shooting a lawyer in the face....that's something I would expect a hillbilly to respect.
March 20, 2009 7:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
Ech, come on. Saying this is an apology is just wrong. If anything, it reads to me like "look, don't hang the whole Rush thing on me, I have more important things to worry about." I think to qualify as an apology to Rush, he'd actually have to mention Rush, don't you think? It's like they bent over backwards not to mention him.
The DCCC comment especially irritates me. It's just the kind of rebuttal to a nonexistant argument that I've seen out of the Republicans for years, and I don't like seeing the same tactics from Democrats. He did not "quickly apologize", he did not "whimper an apology". The political hyperbole really grates on me.
March 20, 2009 9:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
You would think that whomever would stand up to Rush, and then stand by their statements, would not only gather a lot of respect from the dispirited republican base; but would also set a new standard to which others could aspire....and at the same time begin to put the Lush-Genie back in his bottle.
Hell, I WOULD respect a republican who could do that and even consider throwing a vote his way. But that is why I am a Dem and they are ReFoolAgins.
March 20, 2009 9:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Wow. If I were a Republican voter in that district, Tedisco both won and lost my vote in the matter of a half day. What a spineless insect.
March 20, 2009 9:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Limbaugh has turned the Republican party into a colony of eunuchs!
March 20, 2009 11:42 PM | Reply | Permalink
Is anyone else waiting for the inevitable Schwarzenegger/Limbaugh back-and forth ?
Two colossal egos, neither beholden to the party, neither inclined to back down ... who will win that one ?
Has either one ever made a public statement about the other ?
Any bets ? My money is on the governor : he has excelled in three extremely competitive fields, the first one of which he brought out of obscurity.
So far The Leader is undefeated ...
March 20, 2009 11:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA This is AWESOME. Limbaugh stays head of the GOP and they prove they are ball-less wonders. Bunch of cowards.
March 21, 2009 12:28 AM | Reply | Permalink
Rahm was spot on when he appointed Limpbaugh as the official GOP king maker. Republicans quake in his substantial shadow.
March 21, 2009 11:47 AM | Reply | Permalink
The new updated Gooper 11th Commandment: Thou shall not speak ill of bloated, drug-addicted wingnut radio show blowhards.
March 21, 2009 7:32 PM | Reply | Permalink
I have found one thing that Rush Limbaugh has provided for the Republican Party - neutering.
Anyone have Veterinarian Limbaugh's phone number, my dog is in need of his stone's being removed. However, I realize he is quite busy with the Republican Party at this time.
March 21, 2009 7:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
Now, if not one republican has the "you know what" to stand up to a radio talk show host how in the world can they ever make a case for running the country and foreign policy. Putin would turn them into "salad tossers." I'm a republican, but I have no idea what kind of republicans all of these cowards are supposed to be. Maybe they can learn and thing or two from Obama about having courage and standing your ground. If Obama was as feckless as these folks he would have never made it past Hillary. I want to say something else, but I'll leave it alone because after all it is Sunday.
March 22, 2009 7:23 PM | Reply | Permalink