Republican Party's Leadership "Is Afraid of Rush Limbaugh"

Posted by Steve Benen, Washington Monthly at 8:41 AM on August 11, 2009.

HOW 'AFRAID' ARE THEY?.... Mort Kondracke told Fox News last night that the Republican Party's leadership "is afraid of Rush Limbaugh, frankly." As a test to see just how afraid GOP leaders are, the DCCC is pressing Republicans on denouncing some of the radio host's over-the-top rhetoric on Nazis.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) targeted 35 Republican House members including Minority Whip Eric Cantor to publicly rebuke comments conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh made comparing the Democratic Party to the World War II-era Nazi Party.

"While Congressman Eric Cantor has refused to condemn Rush Limbaugh's hateful comparison of Democrats to Nazis for four straight days, that hasn't stopped him from criticizing the President while standing on foreign soil," said DCCC spokeswoman Jennifer Crider in a release on Monday.

"Congressman Eric Cantor needs to finally show some courage and immediately stand up to Rush Limbaugh and condemn his outrageous comments," she added.

It's not just Cantor. The Democratic committee is pressing 35 other House Republicans, asking each of them to have the courage to "condemn" Limbaugh's remarks. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) was singled out.

If I were a betting man, I'd wager that GOP leaders will not distance themselves from the right-wing blowhard. Why would they bother? If recent history is any guide, they'd only have to apologize to Limbaugh 24 hours later, anyway.

Tagged as: limbaugh, cantor

Steve Benen is "blogger in chief" of the popular Washington Monthly online blog, Political Animal. His background includes publishing The Carpetbagger Report, and writing for a variety of publications, including Talking Points Memo, The American Prospect, the Huffington Post, and The Guardian. He has also appeared on NPR's "Talk of the Nation," MSNBC's "Rachel Maddow Show," Air America Radio's "Sam Seder Show," and XM Radio's "POTUS '08."