Rush Limbaugh lauded as the brains of the GOP

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After ascending to the presidency, Barack Obama was more than happy to identify conservative talker Rush Limbaugh as the head of the opposition. Now an author has taken to the OpEd pages of the New York Times to say that Obama is right, but suggest maybe he shouldn’t be so happy about it.


The writer is Zev Chafets, whose book “Rush Limbaugh: An Army of One” is in the works.

Chafers said that with Republicans still recovering for 2008 losses, “Limbaugh stepped into the void with a raucous denunciation of the new president’s agenda and a strategic plan based on his belief that real conservatism wins every time. He reiterated his famous call for Mr. Obama to fail and urged the party faithful to ignore the siren song of bipartisanship and moderation and stay true to the principles of Ronald Reagan.”

That led to the Obama administration backlash against Limbaugh. And although Limbaugh to this day denies any responsibility for Republican policy, Chafets says that GOP policy has been a reflection of Limbaugh’s strategy – agree to nothing and force Democrats to take full responsibility for the state of the economy.

Chafets notes that Limbaugh has been enforcing ideological purity, attacking moderate members of the Republican Party and endorsing conservative groups, particularly the Tea Party movement.

Chafets says that if the Republicans prevail at the ballot box this November, it will largely be due to following the Limbaugh path. The result will be a more difficult legislative reality for Obama to deal with and a Limbaugh-blessed opponent in 2012.