1 00:00:07,424 --> 00:00:08,943 -Women are dying every day 2 00:00:08,967 --> 00:00:10,695 all over the world because of people like you. 3 00:00:10,719 --> 00:00:12,572 -Rush Limbaugh is one of the '90s most controversial figures. 4 00:00:12,596 --> 00:00:16,284 -Feminists in America today are outdated. 5 00:00:16,308 --> 00:00:19,287 -The reason that Trump was so effective with fake news... 6 00:00:19,311 --> 00:00:20,955 It started with Limbaugh. 7 00:00:20,979 --> 00:00:23,833 {\an8}-First on radio, then TV. 8 00:00:23,857 --> 00:00:25,543 {\an8}-Whenever we see gays in the military, 9 00:00:25,567 --> 00:00:27,003 we're gonna go... aah! [ Laughter ] 10 00:00:27,027 --> 00:00:28,504 -Limbaugh attacks men... 11 00:00:28,528 --> 00:00:30,590 -The NFL all too often looks 12 00:00:30,614 --> 00:00:33,134 like a game between the Bloods and the Crips. 13 00:00:33,158 --> 00:00:34,469 - women... 14 00:00:34,493 --> 00:00:36,888 -We're going to do a feminazi update. 15 00:00:36,912 --> 00:00:38,973 - And even children. - That's the kid! 16 00:00:38,997 --> 00:00:40,767 -I don't think anybody was comfortable with that. 17 00:00:40,791 --> 00:00:44,103 -I got the sense that he was beaten up when he was younger. 18 00:00:44,127 --> 00:00:46,648 -He'll spend the decade and beyond 19 00:00:46,672 --> 00:00:49,150 spreading hate and conspiracies. 20 00:00:49,174 --> 00:00:52,237 -"Democrats are evil. Democrats are not patriotic." 21 00:00:52,261 --> 00:00:54,113 -The modern Republican Party 22 00:00:54,137 --> 00:00:56,991 has been reshaped in Limbaugh's image. 23 00:00:57,015 --> 00:00:59,244 -It's Limbaugh's rhetoric that will fuel 24 00:00:59,268 --> 00:01:03,790 the right-wing populism that taints our politics today. 25 00:01:03,814 --> 00:01:06,084 -He purposely divided America. 26 00:01:06,108 --> 00:01:09,003 -You will not replace us! 27 00:01:09,027 --> 00:01:17,027 {\an8}♪♪ 28 00:01:17,744 --> 00:01:19,389 {\an8}[ Dial-up modems screeching ] 29 00:01:19,413 --> 00:01:27,413 {\an8}♪♪ 30 00:01:30,007 --> 00:01:31,842 {\an8}[ Radios tuning ] 31 00:01:36,096 --> 00:01:38,950 {\an8}-The most dangerous man... 32 00:01:38,974 --> 00:01:41,452 - in the U.S.A.! 33 00:01:41,476 --> 00:01:43,037 -Well, Rush Limbaugh bills himself 34 00:01:43,061 --> 00:01:44,872 as "the most dangerous man in America." 35 00:01:44,896 --> 00:01:46,374 Why? Well, why not? 36 00:01:46,398 --> 00:01:48,626 He has the hottest radio talk show in the country. 37 00:01:48,650 --> 00:01:52,171 -[ Mimics fanfare ] Ladies and gentlemen! 38 00:01:52,195 --> 00:01:54,799 -In the '90s, one man gives voice 39 00:01:54,823 --> 00:01:57,635 to the id of American conservatism. 40 00:01:57,659 --> 00:02:00,555 -It seems everywhere you look, there he is, 41 00:02:00,579 --> 00:02:04,225 on the billboards and in the bookstores. 42 00:02:04,249 --> 00:02:06,519 -With his radio and TV shows, 43 00:02:06,543 --> 00:02:10,064 Rush Limbaugh will push together a cult following 44 00:02:10,088 --> 00:02:13,109 by pulling America apart. 45 00:02:13,133 --> 00:02:15,403 -You know what all caused this? 46 00:02:15,427 --> 00:02:17,238 [ Crowd cheering ] Me! 47 00:02:17,262 --> 00:02:18,698 -But Limbaugh's rise to become 48 00:02:18,722 --> 00:02:21,034 the king of blue-collar conservatism 49 00:02:21,058 --> 00:02:23,536 is no rags-to-riches story... 50 00:02:23,560 --> 00:02:26,706 More like riches to even more riches. 51 00:02:26,730 --> 00:02:29,208 -This guy grew up in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, 52 00:02:29,232 --> 00:02:32,295 relatively well-off, very Republican family. 53 00:02:32,319 --> 00:02:35,631 -His dad was a corporate lawyer and a Republican leader. 54 00:02:35,655 --> 00:02:38,718 -His father was very politically opinionated and loved 55 00:02:38,742 --> 00:02:40,303 to spout off at the dinner table. 56 00:02:40,327 --> 00:02:42,055 Friends remember this. You know, when you went 57 00:02:42,079 --> 00:02:43,473 to the Limbaugh dinner table, 58 00:02:43,497 --> 00:02:45,141 you were getting a seminar in things. 59 00:02:45,165 --> 00:02:47,977 -As a teenager, Limbaugh dreams of one day 60 00:02:48,001 --> 00:02:51,481 spinning records for a top 40 radio station. 61 00:02:51,505 --> 00:02:54,150 -He grew up loving radio, loved radio, 62 00:02:54,174 --> 00:02:55,651 and he was a deejay, 63 00:02:55,675 --> 00:02:58,237 much to the consternation of his lawyer father. 64 00:02:58,261 --> 00:03:00,782 He was kind of viewed as the failure of the family. 65 00:03:00,806 --> 00:03:02,450 {\an8}I'm Brian Rosenwald. I'm the author 66 00:03:02,474 --> 00:03:05,203 {\an8}of "Talk Radio's America: How an Industry Took Over 67 00:03:05,227 --> 00:03:08,247 {\an8}a Political Party That Took Over the United States." 68 00:03:08,271 --> 00:03:10,750 He goes off to college and only lasts like one year 69 00:03:10,774 --> 00:03:13,127 because his heart's not in it, he's not interested in it. 70 00:03:13,151 --> 00:03:15,421 And he heads off to try to do radio. 71 00:03:15,445 --> 00:03:18,508 Limbaugh was a good deejay, but he was exactly 72 00:03:18,532 --> 00:03:21,135 the type of person who didn't listen to his boss. 73 00:03:21,159 --> 00:03:24,680 He was the kind of deejay who would call the local pizza place 74 00:03:24,704 --> 00:03:26,349 and order 5,000 pizzas 75 00:03:26,373 --> 00:03:28,976 and tell them he was from the competing station. 76 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:33,380 And so, that's a very poor strategy for remaining employed. 77 00:03:35,298 --> 00:03:38,611 -After getting fired from jobs across the Midwest, 78 00:03:38,635 --> 00:03:44,033 Limbaugh scores his first real break at KFBK in Sacramento. 79 00:03:44,057 --> 00:03:51,290 -He got the job because another right-wing talk show host 80 00:03:51,314 --> 00:03:55,044 made some sort of ethnic slur and was fired. 81 00:03:55,068 --> 00:03:57,880 His name was Morton Downey Jr. 82 00:03:57,904 --> 00:04:00,800 -You disagree with what you hear, don't blame us... 83 00:04:00,824 --> 00:04:02,885 Blame it on Morton Downey Jr. 84 00:04:02,909 --> 00:04:06,639 -Morton Downey Jr. will soon be known for his angry antics 85 00:04:06,663 --> 00:04:08,766 on his late-night TV show. 86 00:04:08,790 --> 00:04:10,435 But in 1984, 87 00:04:10,459 --> 00:04:14,814 he's a loudmouthed deejay talking politics on KFBK. 88 00:04:14,838 --> 00:04:17,442 -And he says something racist about a city councilman, 89 00:04:17,466 --> 00:04:20,361 and so they fire Downey and they have a slot. 90 00:04:20,385 --> 00:04:22,071 -Limbaugh gets that job. 91 00:04:22,095 --> 00:04:24,574 But to appeal to Morton Downey's audience, 92 00:04:24,598 --> 00:04:27,243 he tweaks what he talks about on the mic. 93 00:04:27,267 --> 00:04:29,704 -And you have to understand, at the time that Limbaugh 94 00:04:29,728 --> 00:04:33,499 goes to Sacramento, he is not that political. 95 00:04:33,523 --> 00:04:35,168 This guy's never been registered to vote. 96 00:04:35,192 --> 00:04:36,419 He's in his 30s. 97 00:04:36,443 --> 00:04:38,212 But he's just sort of applying 98 00:04:38,236 --> 00:04:40,923 the shtick that he had developed as a deejay 99 00:04:40,947 --> 00:04:42,925 to political conversation. 100 00:04:42,949 --> 00:04:44,594 And he has a good time, 101 00:04:44,618 --> 00:04:46,679 and he's doing gags and all this kind of stuff. 102 00:04:46,703 --> 00:04:48,014 -So, I have a little joke 103 00:04:48,038 --> 00:04:49,682 I'm gonna play on the light company. 104 00:04:49,706 --> 00:04:52,518 We will call them up on the phone right now. 105 00:04:52,542 --> 00:04:55,438 -Limbaugh's new act is heard by Ed McLaughlin, 106 00:04:55,462 --> 00:04:57,732 the head of ABC Radio. 107 00:04:57,756 --> 00:05:00,234 He's got an opening at WABC, 108 00:05:00,258 --> 00:05:04,614 the company's flagship station in New York City. 109 00:05:04,638 --> 00:05:07,450 -He moves to New York July 4th weekend of 1988, 110 00:05:07,474 --> 00:05:11,245 and August 1st of '88, he debuts nationally. 111 00:05:11,269 --> 00:05:18,002 -♪ With talent on loan from God ♪ 112 00:05:18,026 --> 00:05:20,922 -In New York, Howard Stern has already established himself 113 00:05:20,946 --> 00:05:22,799 as the king of the FM dial 114 00:05:22,823 --> 00:05:26,969 by syndicating his show to stations across the country. 115 00:05:26,993 --> 00:05:30,056 -Howard Stern starts to kind of pioneer the raunchier, 116 00:05:30,080 --> 00:05:31,724 in-your-face, 117 00:05:31,748 --> 00:05:34,852 what they call "guy talk" that could be really sexual. 118 00:05:34,876 --> 00:05:37,772 -Stern was so outrageous on last night's "Tonight Show," 119 00:05:37,796 --> 00:05:41,484 NBC issued a formal apology to its viewers. 120 00:05:41,508 --> 00:05:44,737 -They talk a little politics, but it was mostly focused on sex 121 00:05:44,761 --> 00:05:47,782 and women and popular culture and that kind of thing, 122 00:05:47,806 --> 00:05:49,867 and it pushed the boundaries of propriety. 123 00:05:49,891 --> 00:05:53,955 -But while Howard reinvents what morning drive time sounds like, 124 00:05:53,979 --> 00:05:56,666 Rush uses his midday AM talk show 125 00:05:56,690 --> 00:06:00,044 to do the same thing with political radio. 126 00:06:00,068 --> 00:06:02,129 -Tantamount Pictures presents... 127 00:06:02,153 --> 00:06:05,633 Bill Clinton in "Tax-ula." 128 00:06:05,657 --> 00:06:09,470 -It's hard to understate how different and unique 129 00:06:09,494 --> 00:06:12,056 and fresh his show feels. 130 00:06:12,080 --> 00:06:14,225 -There's no doubt that the Rush Limbaugh radio show 131 00:06:14,249 --> 00:06:15,726 was pretty inventive. 132 00:06:15,750 --> 00:06:17,520 There was more comedy. 133 00:06:17,544 --> 00:06:21,899 Limbaugh had an amazing talent of connecting with his audience. 134 00:06:21,923 --> 00:06:25,778 He did it unlike other right-wing ranters on the radio. 135 00:06:25,802 --> 00:06:29,323 - on loan from God, Rush Limbaugh, 136 00:06:29,347 --> 00:06:31,993 here on the Excellence in Broadcasting Network. 137 00:06:32,017 --> 00:06:33,286 -Calls his network 138 00:06:33,310 --> 00:06:34,996 the Excellence in Broadcasting Network, 139 00:06:35,020 --> 00:06:36,872 and EIB One is his plane 140 00:06:36,896 --> 00:06:39,292 when he gets wealthy enough to have a plane. 141 00:06:39,316 --> 00:06:42,211 -And that was very sticky. You know what I mean? 142 00:06:42,235 --> 00:06:43,921 Excellence in Broadcasting, you know. 143 00:06:43,945 --> 00:06:45,631 It's just... it was all... 144 00:06:45,655 --> 00:06:48,175 It was all this... I wouldn't even say it was marketing, 145 00:06:48,199 --> 00:06:51,012 'cause it was way more campy than marketing, you know? 146 00:06:51,036 --> 00:06:53,222 -Limbaugh quickly makes a name for himself 147 00:06:53,246 --> 00:06:55,933 by belittling liberal beliefs. 148 00:06:55,957 --> 00:07:00,271 -Morality is not defined by individual choice. 149 00:07:00,295 --> 00:07:01,731 You hear that, you liberals? 150 00:07:01,755 --> 00:07:03,399 -He has caller abortions. 151 00:07:03,423 --> 00:07:06,277 He plays, um, a vacuum cleaner sound effect 152 00:07:06,301 --> 00:07:07,737 and screaming in the background 153 00:07:07,761 --> 00:07:09,614 while hanging up on liberal callers 154 00:07:09,638 --> 00:07:12,325 And his point... he stops them after a short period of time, 155 00:07:12,349 --> 00:07:14,910 but his point is that they're more controversial 156 00:07:14,934 --> 00:07:16,579 than actual abortions. 157 00:07:16,603 --> 00:07:18,289 So, he's making a conservative political point, 158 00:07:18,313 --> 00:07:19,749 but he's not just lecturing on it. 159 00:07:19,773 --> 00:07:21,208 He's not a sermonizer. 160 00:07:21,232 --> 00:07:22,919 This is not church. This is fun. 161 00:07:22,943 --> 00:07:24,962 - ♪ Whoa! ♪ - Rush Limbaugh! 162 00:07:24,986 --> 00:07:26,339 -Yeah. 163 00:07:26,363 --> 00:07:28,382 -The first time I heard Rush Limbaugh, 164 00:07:28,406 --> 00:07:34,180 I vividly remember driving to my sister's house in Cincinnati. 165 00:07:34,204 --> 00:07:37,725 I turned him on, I'm somewhere in the middle of Indiana, 166 00:07:37,749 --> 00:07:42,271 and here's this energetic, kind of off-the-wall guy... 167 00:07:42,295 --> 00:07:43,731 -[ High-pitched voice ] Tiananmen Square, 168 00:07:43,755 --> 00:07:45,399 nuclear weapons, oh, no! 169 00:07:45,423 --> 00:07:47,944 - who's speaking to me. 170 00:07:47,968 --> 00:07:51,489 {\an8}I am Joe Walsh, former Illinois congressman, 171 00:07:51,513 --> 00:07:54,575 {\an8}former Republican candidate for president, 172 00:07:54,599 --> 00:07:57,495 {\an8}and former Rush Limbaugh listener. 173 00:07:57,519 --> 00:08:00,247 -Before Rush, conservatives complained 174 00:08:00,271 --> 00:08:04,418 that no one on TV or radio speaks for them... 175 00:08:04,442 --> 00:08:09,006 -Generally, if you were right of center, you'd get pounded. 176 00:08:09,030 --> 00:08:10,675 You'd get criticized. 177 00:08:10,699 --> 00:08:12,468 - and that the mainstream media 178 00:08:12,492 --> 00:08:15,262 is biased against them and their values. 179 00:08:15,286 --> 00:08:18,808 -ABC, CBS, NBC... They're all left of center. 180 00:08:18,832 --> 00:08:20,726 CNN... left of center. 181 00:08:20,750 --> 00:08:23,729 I mean, most of the media in America is, 182 00:08:23,753 --> 00:08:26,065 {\an8}has always been left of center. 183 00:08:26,089 --> 00:08:27,942 {\an8}-Thank you, Mr. President. 184 00:08:27,966 --> 00:08:31,112 {\an8}-Well, I hope I've answered your questions as best I could, 185 00:08:31,136 --> 00:08:33,739 {\an8}given the very little that I know. 186 00:08:33,763 --> 00:08:38,911 {\an8}-So to have somebody like Rush Limbaugh beat them up, 187 00:08:38,935 --> 00:08:40,955 it was refreshing. 188 00:08:40,979 --> 00:08:44,750 -The country was moving to the right since Reagan, 189 00:08:44,774 --> 00:08:47,878 {\an8}and there was... There had been backlash 190 00:08:47,902 --> 00:08:50,589 {\an8}from, you know, the social movements. 191 00:08:50,613 --> 00:08:52,383 You know, there was the hippie movement, 192 00:08:52,407 --> 00:08:54,093 there was the civil rights movement, 193 00:08:54,117 --> 00:08:55,886 there was the feminist movement. 194 00:08:55,910 --> 00:08:58,806 -This is a kind of peak moment in the culture wars. 195 00:08:58,830 --> 00:09:00,766 You've got a lot of white Christians, 196 00:09:00,790 --> 00:09:04,311 especially white Christian men, who feel like the world 197 00:09:04,335 --> 00:09:07,148 has been turned upside down on them over like 20 years. 198 00:09:07,172 --> 00:09:08,858 -Telling these men, 199 00:09:08,882 --> 00:09:11,402 "Well, you can't call Black people 'colored' anymore, 200 00:09:11,426 --> 00:09:15,364 you can't call women 'girls' anymore." 201 00:09:15,388 --> 00:09:17,908 -And it's these white conservative men 202 00:09:17,932 --> 00:09:19,577 who see in Rush Limbaugh 203 00:09:19,601 --> 00:09:22,621 a man willing to speak up on their behalf. 204 00:09:22,645 --> 00:09:26,751 -Rush had an amazing, amazing sense of what people 205 00:09:26,775 --> 00:09:31,756 who tended to think like he did, where they were coming from. 206 00:09:31,780 --> 00:09:34,175 -He's just becoming a bigger and bigger deal, 207 00:09:34,199 --> 00:09:35,426 especially for men. 208 00:09:35,450 --> 00:09:38,137 It becomes like their clubhouse. 209 00:09:38,161 --> 00:09:40,431 -In only a year, his audience swells 210 00:09:40,455 --> 00:09:44,852 to almost 1 million people on 172 stations. 211 00:09:44,876 --> 00:09:48,189 His listeners soak up his lack of political correctness, 212 00:09:48,213 --> 00:09:51,525 and so long as he's beating up on liberals, 213 00:09:51,549 --> 00:09:54,028 they don't care if what he's saying is true. 214 00:09:54,052 --> 00:09:57,573 If Rush says it, they believe it. 215 00:09:57,597 --> 00:09:59,283 -And so, the simple fact of the matter 216 00:09:59,307 --> 00:10:01,994 is that the homeless advocacy in this country is... 217 00:10:02,018 --> 00:10:04,080 Is, I think, based upon fraud. 218 00:10:04,104 --> 00:10:07,833 -This guy doesn't just get his facts wrong... 219 00:10:07,857 --> 00:10:10,044 He turns them upside down. 220 00:10:10,068 --> 00:10:12,171 {\an8}My name is Jeff Cohen. 221 00:10:12,195 --> 00:10:14,256 {\an8}I founded the media watch group FAIR 222 00:10:14,280 --> 00:10:19,678 {\an8}that debunked and documented Rush Limbaugh's reign of error. 223 00:10:19,702 --> 00:10:23,140 I remember the first time I heard Limbaugh. 224 00:10:23,164 --> 00:10:27,645 I was in a cab in New York City, 225 00:10:27,669 --> 00:10:30,356 and I was in that cab for about 20 minutes. 226 00:10:30,380 --> 00:10:32,817 In the first 20 minutes, I said, "This is one 227 00:10:32,841 --> 00:10:36,320 of the biggest charlatans in the history of talk radio." 228 00:10:36,344 --> 00:10:38,030 He once said that, you know, 229 00:10:38,054 --> 00:10:40,616 "This wasn't handed to me on a silver platter." 230 00:10:40,640 --> 00:10:42,493 Not quite true. 231 00:10:42,517 --> 00:10:47,915 His first radio job, he hosted a show on a local radio station, 232 00:10:47,939 --> 00:10:50,584 and his dad was the part owner. 233 00:10:50,608 --> 00:10:53,504 -I don't think he cared about the truth. 234 00:10:53,528 --> 00:10:55,381 I don't think it was important to him. 235 00:10:55,405 --> 00:10:57,466 That wasn't the goal of his show. 236 00:10:57,490 --> 00:11:01,053 -I never knew from the beginning 237 00:11:01,077 --> 00:11:04,473 if Rush Limbaugh believed a [bleep] word he said. 238 00:11:04,497 --> 00:11:06,100 -A lot of people say, "You really believe 239 00:11:06,124 --> 00:11:07,685 the stuff you say?" 240 00:11:07,709 --> 00:11:09,353 I don't know. That's for you to figure out. 241 00:11:09,377 --> 00:11:13,941 -I think Rush knew in many instances 242 00:11:13,965 --> 00:11:15,818 he was not telling the truth. 243 00:11:15,842 --> 00:11:19,363 Even after being corrected, he would keep saying the lie. 244 00:11:19,387 --> 00:11:22,032 -Limbaugh isn't just loose with his facts. 245 00:11:22,056 --> 00:11:24,118 He's also becoming more and more derisive 246 00:11:24,142 --> 00:11:27,788 towards the social and political groups he targets. 247 00:11:27,812 --> 00:11:31,292 -It's no secret the talk show host offends many people, 248 00:11:31,316 --> 00:11:35,170 including gays, women, Democrats, and liberals. 249 00:11:35,194 --> 00:11:37,631 -It was a lot of complaining about liberals and Democrats 250 00:11:37,655 --> 00:11:39,383 and women and Black people. 251 00:11:39,407 --> 00:11:43,971 -Making fun of gay people, making fun of people with HIV. 252 00:11:43,995 --> 00:11:46,473 -The thing that a lot of liberals start to feel 253 00:11:46,497 --> 00:11:48,975 is that he was a bigot. 254 00:11:48,999 --> 00:11:54,481 He punched down at people who were less powerful than him. 255 00:11:54,505 --> 00:11:56,609 -Early on, Limbaugh popularizes 256 00:11:56,633 --> 00:11:58,277 {\an8}the term feminazi 257 00:11:58,301 --> 00:12:01,906 {\an8}to describe any woman who's pro-choice, 258 00:12:01,930 --> 00:12:06,160 something he's called out for when he appears on "Donahue." 259 00:12:06,184 --> 00:12:08,370 - "Feminazis"? 260 00:12:08,394 --> 00:12:11,707 Feminists are Nazis? - I don't think 261 00:12:11,731 --> 00:12:13,834 that the feminists who say, "We're feminists, 262 00:12:13,858 --> 00:12:15,628 we're fierce and we're in your face," 263 00:12:15,652 --> 00:12:18,672 which is clearly "us against men," is representative 264 00:12:18,696 --> 00:12:21,634 of the majority of women in this country, or people. 265 00:12:21,658 --> 00:12:24,553 -Not to psychoanalyze Rush, 266 00:12:24,577 --> 00:12:27,640 but he seemed to have issues with women 267 00:12:27,664 --> 00:12:30,768 and he seemed to have issues with sex. 268 00:12:30,792 --> 00:12:35,481 There seemed to be a real ugly anger for women 269 00:12:35,505 --> 00:12:38,817 that would come out publicly on his show. 270 00:12:38,841 --> 00:12:40,486 How many of you guys 271 00:12:40,510 --> 00:12:43,197 in your own experience with women 272 00:12:43,221 --> 00:12:46,533 have learned that no means yes if you know how to spot it? 273 00:12:46,557 --> 00:12:50,371 -Well, I mean, I guess people could say Rush was a sexist. 274 00:12:50,395 --> 00:12:53,707 He said sexist things. You know what? 275 00:12:53,731 --> 00:12:56,293 My father said sexist things when I was growing up. 276 00:12:56,317 --> 00:12:57,753 My dad's not a sexist. 277 00:12:57,777 --> 00:12:59,421 {\an8}My name is Nick Africano. 278 00:12:59,445 --> 00:13:01,382 {\an8}I was a producer for "Rush Limbaugh," 279 00:13:01,406 --> 00:13:05,177 {\an8}the television show, from '91 to '95. 280 00:13:05,201 --> 00:13:07,513 Can you use language on TV? 281 00:13:07,537 --> 00:13:08,555 - Yeah. - Oh, okay. 282 00:13:08,579 --> 00:13:10,224 -[ Speaking indistinctly ] 283 00:13:10,248 --> 00:13:12,643 -I mean, I won't... I'm not gonna say [bleep] 284 00:13:12,667 --> 00:13:14,520 -I think like a lot of misogynists, 285 00:13:14,544 --> 00:13:17,022 you know, it wasn't his fault... It's those damn women, 286 00:13:17,046 --> 00:13:19,858 and it's the feminists and the feminazis. 287 00:13:19,882 --> 00:13:22,945 -Despite increasing outrage from activist groups, 288 00:13:22,969 --> 00:13:26,490 Rush Limbaugh doesn't get canceled like he might today. 289 00:13:26,514 --> 00:13:28,742 Instead, he's rewarded. 290 00:13:28,766 --> 00:13:33,122 CBS asked Limbaugh to guest host Pat Sajak's talk show, 291 00:13:33,146 --> 00:13:35,958 but it's a request they will soon regret. 292 00:13:35,982 --> 00:13:41,588 {\an8}-Affirmative action is an insult. 293 00:13:41,612 --> 00:13:44,508 {\an8}- [ Indistinct shouting ] - Sir, please sit down. 294 00:13:44,532 --> 00:13:48,345 {\an8}We'll get to you in good time. 295 00:13:48,369 --> 00:13:50,639 {\an8}[ Audience shouting, booing ] 296 00:13:50,663 --> 00:13:55,001 {\an8}♪♪ 297 00:13:59,464 --> 00:14:01,942 -By 1990, Rush Limbaugh the right-wing radio phenomenon 298 00:14:01,966 --> 00:14:04,528 becomes Rush Limbaugh the human cash machine. 299 00:14:04,552 --> 00:14:07,156 Along with his million-dollar salary, 300 00:14:07,180 --> 00:14:08,991 Limbaugh hawks an ever-growing range 301 00:14:09,015 --> 00:14:13,203 of Excellence in Broadcasting merchandise, along with 302 00:14:13,227 --> 00:14:16,123 the "Rush to Excellence" public speaking tour, 303 00:14:16,147 --> 00:14:18,584 where he earns $250,000 a year 304 00:14:18,608 --> 00:14:21,920 off fans willing to pay for in-person jokes 305 00:14:21,944 --> 00:14:24,840 about what he calls "libtards." 306 00:14:24,864 --> 00:14:28,802 -The latest craze among progressive homosexuals 307 00:14:28,826 --> 00:14:31,430 has resulted in numerous gay men 308 00:14:31,454 --> 00:14:34,600 reporting to hospital emergency rooms 309 00:14:34,624 --> 00:14:39,605 needing gerbils surgically removed from their rectum. 310 00:14:39,629 --> 00:14:42,983 -Rush would get particularly ugly 311 00:14:43,007 --> 00:14:48,739 {\an8}making fun of the whole LGBTQ community. 312 00:14:48,763 --> 00:14:52,910 Man, it would be like he took a knife and just stabbed people 313 00:14:52,934 --> 00:14:57,498 and twisted that knife, in a much uglier fashion 314 00:14:57,522 --> 00:15:00,084 than when he's just going after somebody 315 00:15:00,108 --> 00:15:03,379 because of climate change or some other issue. 316 00:15:03,403 --> 00:15:05,839 -His increasingly toxic diatribes 317 00:15:05,863 --> 00:15:08,092 earn him more and more fans, 318 00:15:08,116 --> 00:15:12,221 the most diehard of which he nicknames the Dittoheads. 319 00:15:12,245 --> 00:15:15,599 -Rush himself would call them Dittoheads, 320 00:15:15,623 --> 00:15:18,018 and they started calling themselves Dittoheads. 321 00:15:18,042 --> 00:15:19,978 Means that they just agree 322 00:15:20,002 --> 00:15:23,190 with everything that Rush Limbaugh says. 323 00:15:23,214 --> 00:15:24,650 -By the way, Ditto and a half 324 00:15:24,674 --> 00:15:26,318 from the land of the lonely pine. 325 00:15:26,342 --> 00:15:27,653 -Thank you. Thanks very much. 326 00:15:27,677 --> 00:15:30,989 {\an8}-A Dittohead was just a rabid fan. 327 00:15:31,013 --> 00:15:32,491 {\an8}"I agree with you. Ditto." 328 00:15:32,515 --> 00:15:34,785 -Politically, I agree with him. Beautifully. 329 00:15:34,809 --> 00:15:36,245 I always agree with him. 330 00:15:36,269 --> 00:15:41,458 -My dad was such a Dittohead that he said, 331 00:15:41,482 --> 00:15:45,587 "I don't agree with everything Rush says... 332 00:15:45,611 --> 00:15:49,216 Rush agrees with everything I think." 333 00:15:49,240 --> 00:15:50,592 {\an8}I'm Jen Senko. 334 00:15:50,616 --> 00:15:52,886 {\an8}I'm an award-winning filmmaker, 335 00:15:52,910 --> 00:15:55,806 {\an8}director of "The Brainwashing of My Dad." 336 00:15:55,830 --> 00:15:58,308 -Like many Americans in the '90s, 337 00:15:58,332 --> 00:16:01,019 Jen's dad discovers Rush Limbaugh... 338 00:16:01,043 --> 00:16:02,771 -Rush Limbaugh. 339 00:16:02,795 --> 00:16:05,899 - on the car radio during his daily commute to work. 340 00:16:05,923 --> 00:16:10,612 -Before Rush, my dad was, you know, a Democrat. 341 00:16:10,636 --> 00:16:14,116 To keep himself company, he... he found talk radio. 342 00:16:14,140 --> 00:16:19,538 He wasn't much into music, but the guy on the radio 343 00:16:19,562 --> 00:16:23,709 was racist, sexist, homophobe, 344 00:16:23,733 --> 00:16:27,004 and always, always, always 345 00:16:27,028 --> 00:16:30,924 pounding on liberals and Democrats 346 00:16:30,948 --> 00:16:33,010 and... and demonizing them. 347 00:16:33,034 --> 00:16:37,097 "Democrats are evil. Democrats are not patriotic. 348 00:16:37,121 --> 00:16:40,350 Democrats are gonna just destroy the country." 349 00:16:40,374 --> 00:16:43,020 And, so my dad found Rush Limbaugh 350 00:16:43,044 --> 00:16:45,314 and fell in man love 351 00:16:45,338 --> 00:16:48,066 and became addicted to Limbaugh. 352 00:16:48,090 --> 00:16:51,820 It was like the pod people, that movie. 353 00:16:51,844 --> 00:16:56,116 This is the body of my dad, but it's not my dad. 354 00:16:56,140 --> 00:16:58,410 {\an8}-You have to understand that if you're driving a truck 355 00:16:58,434 --> 00:17:01,496 {\an8}or you're in an auto body shop or you're a homemaker, 356 00:17:01,520 --> 00:17:04,166 you know, they're spending 15 hours a week with him. 357 00:17:04,190 --> 00:17:06,376 And he is, you know, almost there... 358 00:17:06,400 --> 00:17:08,962 That could be more than they're spending with their spouses. 359 00:17:08,986 --> 00:17:10,714 He becomes part of their families. 360 00:17:10,738 --> 00:17:13,217 He becomes, you know, a friend to them, 361 00:17:13,241 --> 00:17:16,053 and they form this bond. 362 00:17:16,077 --> 00:17:17,721 -You know, it's just a bunch 363 00:17:17,745 --> 00:17:19,932 of wacko, leftist environmentalists 364 00:17:19,956 --> 00:17:23,227 who are continuing their assault on capitalist America. 365 00:17:23,251 --> 00:17:25,729 -Rush became my father's best friend. 366 00:17:25,753 --> 00:17:28,565 He locked himself in the kitchen for three hours 367 00:17:28,589 --> 00:17:30,734 and would have these Limbaugh lunches. 368 00:17:30,758 --> 00:17:34,154 And my mom was cast to the living room 369 00:17:34,178 --> 00:17:36,365 to eat her lunch in the living room. 370 00:17:36,389 --> 00:17:40,911 I remember thinking that my dad's addicted to this anger. 371 00:17:40,935 --> 00:17:44,498 -And the number of Americans addicted to Limbaugh is growing. 372 00:17:44,522 --> 00:17:47,584 By 1990, his nationwide syndicated network 373 00:17:47,608 --> 00:17:49,711 reaches 5 million listeners. 374 00:17:49,735 --> 00:17:52,631 And as long as his audience continues to grow, 375 00:17:52,655 --> 00:17:57,302 the show's corporate sponsors don't seem to mind the vitriol. 376 00:17:57,326 --> 00:18:00,097 -When it comes to the US media, it's corporations 377 00:18:00,121 --> 00:18:03,767 {\an8}that are the owners, and that can never be forgotten, 378 00:18:03,791 --> 00:18:08,563 {\an8}that these media corporations were willing to give a voice 379 00:18:08,587 --> 00:18:12,150 to a guy who was a champion of the overdog. 380 00:18:12,174 --> 00:18:14,236 He defended tobacco industry, 381 00:18:14,260 --> 00:18:16,321 he defended the pharmaceutical companies. 382 00:18:16,345 --> 00:18:18,824 They're huge advertisers. 383 00:18:18,848 --> 00:18:22,327 And he was beating up on these powerless groups. 384 00:18:22,351 --> 00:18:24,288 So, the big corporations, 385 00:18:24,312 --> 00:18:27,499 I think, were happy to give him a microphone. 386 00:18:27,523 --> 00:18:29,167 -In March of 1990, 387 00:18:29,191 --> 00:18:31,545 the executives at media giant CBS 388 00:18:31,569 --> 00:18:35,215 choose to ignore Limbaugh's attacks against minority groups 389 00:18:35,239 --> 00:18:39,761 when they ask him to guest host Pat Sajak's failing talk show. 390 00:18:39,785 --> 00:18:42,681 -This is, you know, CBS. This is the big time. 391 00:18:42,705 --> 00:18:47,144 This is... they're trying to see could Limbaugh be a star 392 00:18:47,168 --> 00:18:50,063 in late-night television the way he is on the radio? 393 00:18:50,087 --> 00:18:52,149 {\an8}♪♪ 394 00:18:52,173 --> 00:18:54,818 -As you know, there's been a controversy brewing all week 395 00:18:54,842 --> 00:18:57,404 regarding the Idaho abortion bill. 396 00:18:57,428 --> 00:19:00,073 -Rush quickly discovers what happens when you do 397 00:19:00,097 --> 00:19:04,161 your bellicose act in front of a non-Dittohead crowd. 398 00:19:04,185 --> 00:19:05,746 - You'll never have a baby. - You... It has nothing... 399 00:19:05,770 --> 00:19:07,414 Madam... Madam... - You'll never be pregnant. 400 00:19:07,438 --> 00:19:08,999 You'll never have to have an abortion. 401 00:19:09,023 --> 00:19:10,625 - Madam? - Yes, Rush? 402 00:19:10,649 --> 00:19:12,711 - Why are you so mad? - Why am I mad? 403 00:19:12,735 --> 00:19:14,463 - Yeah. - Because women are dying 404 00:19:14,487 --> 00:19:16,757 every day all over the world because of people like you. 405 00:19:16,781 --> 00:19:19,468 -A bunch of activists are in the audience, 406 00:19:19,492 --> 00:19:22,012 and they start talking back to him. 407 00:19:22,036 --> 00:19:24,014 -We are going to be wherever you are 408 00:19:24,038 --> 00:19:26,433 and we're gonna denounce and expose you. 409 00:19:26,457 --> 00:19:29,311 -It's just an utter, unmitigated disaster. 410 00:19:29,335 --> 00:19:31,813 [ Cheers and applause ] 411 00:19:31,837 --> 00:19:35,150 -Rush Limbaugh never handled opposition well. 412 00:19:35,174 --> 00:19:37,235 - Now... - Go back to the radio, Rush! 413 00:19:37,259 --> 00:19:42,824 -Rush Limbaugh never, ever really was put in a position 414 00:19:42,848 --> 00:19:47,162 from the beginning where he had to defend his point of view. 415 00:19:47,186 --> 00:19:49,164 -Finally, some of the people 416 00:19:49,188 --> 00:19:52,501 he's been denouncing from his throne 417 00:19:52,525 --> 00:19:54,503 are there confronting him, 418 00:19:54,527 --> 00:19:57,422 and it was an embarrassing moment for him. 419 00:19:57,446 --> 00:19:59,925 -Limbaugh gives up on TV for now 420 00:19:59,949 --> 00:20:04,638 and returns to the safety of his three-hour-a-day radio program. 421 00:20:04,662 --> 00:20:06,515 -In TV, we have a live audience, 422 00:20:06,539 --> 00:20:10,268 and I think that was a fair bit difficult for him. 423 00:20:10,292 --> 00:20:12,104 You know, when he was behind the radio, 424 00:20:12,128 --> 00:20:15,649 he just had to crank the mic on and, uh... and get talking. 425 00:20:15,673 --> 00:20:17,317 It was pretty easy that way 426 00:20:17,341 --> 00:20:19,403 in terms of having to deal with anybody. 427 00:20:19,427 --> 00:20:23,573 -From behind his mic, Rush can do what he does best... 428 00:20:23,597 --> 00:20:27,119 Spout off about feminists, immigrants, and minority groups 429 00:20:27,143 --> 00:20:30,664 he thinks are all destroying the "real America." 430 00:20:30,688 --> 00:20:33,083 And his opinions soon reach the inner circles 431 00:20:33,107 --> 00:20:35,585 of a political group that agrees with him. 432 00:20:35,609 --> 00:20:40,173 -Slowly, Republican consultants, Republican staffers, 433 00:20:40,197 --> 00:20:43,260 Republican politicians are being turned on to him, 434 00:20:43,284 --> 00:20:45,137 and when they're turned on to him, 435 00:20:45,161 --> 00:20:46,847 a light bulb goes off that, 436 00:20:46,871 --> 00:20:48,932 you know, this could be really politically beneficial. 437 00:20:48,956 --> 00:20:54,104 -The Republican Party woke up to the fact that, "Oh, my God, 438 00:20:54,128 --> 00:20:58,275 this guy is channeling our voters better than we are, 439 00:20:58,299 --> 00:21:01,862 and we better embrace him pragmatically and politically." 440 00:21:01,886 --> 00:21:05,574 -The Republican who embraces Rush the most 441 00:21:05,598 --> 00:21:08,618 is a man named Roger Ailes. 442 00:21:08,642 --> 00:21:11,329 -Before Rush, there was Roger Ailes. 443 00:21:11,353 --> 00:21:13,957 -Roger Ailes, who is a television producer 444 00:21:13,981 --> 00:21:16,126 and political consultant 445 00:21:16,150 --> 00:21:18,879 responsible for lots of famous ads. 446 00:21:18,903 --> 00:21:22,132 -One of his most notorious is "Revolving Door," 447 00:21:22,156 --> 00:21:26,803 a campaign commercial for the Bush-Quayle ticket in 1988. 448 00:21:26,827 --> 00:21:29,014 The ad is a not-so-subtle suggestion 449 00:21:29,038 --> 00:21:31,475 that voting for Michael Dukakis 450 00:21:31,499 --> 00:21:34,644 means Black criminals get released from prison. 451 00:21:34,668 --> 00:21:36,897 -This was calculated to emphasize 452 00:21:36,921 --> 00:21:38,648 the one African American here. 453 00:21:38,672 --> 00:21:43,153 -Roger Ailes was one of the most important figures in the history 454 00:21:43,177 --> 00:21:46,156 of the modern Republican Party and the modern media. 455 00:21:46,180 --> 00:21:50,035 Ailes worked for Richard Nixon's campaigns, 456 00:21:50,059 --> 00:21:53,580 later worked for Reagan, worked for Bush the first. 457 00:21:53,604 --> 00:21:57,334 -He already had this idea that he wanted to make news 458 00:21:57,358 --> 00:22:00,879 that would be biased towards Republicans 459 00:22:00,903 --> 00:22:03,548 and that would earn Republican voters. 460 00:22:03,572 --> 00:22:07,552 -In a few years' time, Ailes will help create Fox News, 461 00:22:07,576 --> 00:22:12,015 the conservative wing of Rupert Murdoch's media empire. 462 00:22:12,039 --> 00:22:15,560 But in 1992, he's helping transform Limbaugh 463 00:22:15,584 --> 00:22:19,898 from a right-wing bomb thrower into a guided missile. 464 00:22:19,922 --> 00:22:23,360 -Roger Ailes and Rush were two of a kind. 465 00:22:23,384 --> 00:22:26,905 In fact, when they met, Roger Ailes said it felt 466 00:22:26,929 --> 00:22:30,033 like he met his... his soulmate. 467 00:22:30,057 --> 00:22:32,911 -In June of 1992, 468 00:22:32,935 --> 00:22:37,165 he arranged for Rush Limbaugh to come to the White House. 469 00:22:37,189 --> 00:22:43,171 And George Bush the first carries his overnight bag 470 00:22:43,195 --> 00:22:46,508 into the Lincoln Bedroom of the White House. 471 00:22:46,532 --> 00:22:48,051 -Think about this. 472 00:22:48,075 --> 00:22:50,428 This is a guy who's been fired like five times 473 00:22:50,452 --> 00:22:52,389 and isn't even registered to vote. 474 00:22:52,413 --> 00:22:54,891 And in less than a decade, he's sleeping in the Lincoln Bedroom. 475 00:22:54,915 --> 00:22:57,811 Like, you could never have picked a guy and been... 476 00:22:57,835 --> 00:23:00,939 Who was more unlikely to be a political star 477 00:23:00,963 --> 00:23:03,275 in short order than Rush Limbaugh. 478 00:23:03,299 --> 00:23:07,445 {\an8}♪♪ 479 00:23:07,469 --> 00:23:09,531 {\an8}-Roger Ailes believes enough in Limbaugh 480 00:23:09,555 --> 00:23:11,199 {\an8}to bring him back to TV 481 00:23:11,223 --> 00:23:13,702 {\an8}by creating "The Rush Limbaugh Show." 482 00:23:13,726 --> 00:23:16,079 {\an8}Learning from the Pat Sajak fiasco, 483 00:23:16,103 --> 00:23:19,833 {\an8}Ailes fills the studio audience with loyal Dittoheads. 484 00:23:19,857 --> 00:23:21,585 The show premieres in syndication 485 00:23:21,609 --> 00:23:24,087 in September of 1992, 486 00:23:24,111 --> 00:23:26,798 just a few months before Clinton challenges Bush 487 00:23:26,822 --> 00:23:28,675 for the presidency. 488 00:23:28,699 --> 00:23:32,262 -Rush danced to his drum, and he said things 489 00:23:32,286 --> 00:23:34,264 that lots of people didn't like. 490 00:23:34,288 --> 00:23:35,724 He made people crazy. 491 00:23:35,748 --> 00:23:37,517 But you know what? If you play it safe, 492 00:23:37,541 --> 00:23:39,603 I guess people don't talk about you. 493 00:23:39,627 --> 00:23:42,314 -Leading up to the election, Rush's TV show, 494 00:23:42,338 --> 00:23:44,816 along with his three hours a day on radio, 495 00:23:44,840 --> 00:23:46,735 serves as one long attack ad 496 00:23:46,759 --> 00:23:49,237 against Democrats and the Clintons. 497 00:23:49,261 --> 00:23:50,780 -A woman is like a tea bag. 498 00:23:50,804 --> 00:23:52,699 Put her in hot water, she just gets stronger. 499 00:23:52,723 --> 00:23:54,034 And, uh... 500 00:23:54,058 --> 00:23:55,910 [ Witch cackles ] 501 00:23:55,934 --> 00:23:58,580 -We made fun of Hillary Clinton, for sure, yes. 502 00:23:58,604 --> 00:24:00,248 And Bill Clinton. 503 00:24:00,272 --> 00:24:02,167 -Back and forth, can't make up his mind 504 00:24:02,191 --> 00:24:04,294 which way he wants to go. That's what it looks like 505 00:24:04,318 --> 00:24:07,422 when Bill Clinton gets close to the Selective Service Office. 506 00:24:07,446 --> 00:24:09,257 -During the run-up to the election, 507 00:24:09,281 --> 00:24:13,178 Clinton focuses on winning over young and Black voters 508 00:24:13,202 --> 00:24:16,056 by appearing on shows like "Arsenio Hall." 509 00:24:16,080 --> 00:24:18,808 -Meanwhile, Bush Senior relies on Limbaugh 510 00:24:18,832 --> 00:24:23,146 and attacking Clinton's military draft record. 511 00:24:23,170 --> 00:24:25,440 -Speaking to a national radio audience today, 512 00:24:25,464 --> 00:24:28,777 President Bush told conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh 513 00:24:28,801 --> 00:24:30,654 he doesn't want to make a big deal 514 00:24:30,678 --> 00:24:33,239 out of Clinton's draft status, but he did call on the Democrat 515 00:24:33,263 --> 00:24:35,742 to give a full explanation of his non-service. 516 00:24:35,766 --> 00:24:38,453 -The only problem with Limbaugh criticizing Clinton 517 00:24:38,477 --> 00:24:40,330 for dodging the draft is that Limbaugh 518 00:24:40,354 --> 00:24:43,249 did the exact same thing, but for different reasons. 519 00:24:43,273 --> 00:24:45,043 -There were a lot of good reasons 520 00:24:45,067 --> 00:24:47,337 to criticize Bill Clinton, 521 00:24:47,361 --> 00:24:52,842 but Bill Clinton was opposed to the Vietnam War that he evaded. 522 00:24:52,866 --> 00:24:56,137 Rush Limbaugh supported the Vietnam War. 523 00:24:56,161 --> 00:25:00,266 He just wanted other people to fight it for him. 524 00:25:00,290 --> 00:25:03,520 -Rush and other, uh, outspoken leaders 525 00:25:03,544 --> 00:25:06,898 in... in conservative media, I think, 526 00:25:06,922 --> 00:25:11,861 do best when they have an enemy that they can rail against. 527 00:25:11,885 --> 00:25:14,531 Bill Clinton. Hillary Clinton. Barack Obama. 528 00:25:14,555 --> 00:25:18,159 -You know, listen, the Clintons... fair game. 529 00:25:18,183 --> 00:25:20,787 And they... and, listen, they took a lot of people apart 530 00:25:20,811 --> 00:25:22,664 on... on the way to where they were. 531 00:25:22,688 --> 00:25:25,834 {\an8}So, that never felt like an unfair fight. 532 00:25:25,858 --> 00:25:27,711 {\an8}-While Rush starts out his TV show 533 00:25:27,735 --> 00:25:29,671 with the same humorous political jabs 534 00:25:29,695 --> 00:25:32,257 he perfected on radio, it's not long 535 00:25:32,281 --> 00:25:36,553 before he crosses the line into petty personal attacks. 536 00:25:36,577 --> 00:25:39,329 -He was cruel from the beginning. 537 00:25:43,625 --> 00:25:47,564 -On January 20th, 1993, Bill Clinton gets sworn in 538 00:25:47,588 --> 00:25:51,234 as the 42nd president of the United States. 539 00:25:51,258 --> 00:25:55,029 Immediately, he outlines his vision for change. 540 00:25:55,053 --> 00:25:57,532 -We're going to ask the rich to pay their fair share 541 00:25:57,556 --> 00:26:01,202 so the rest of America can finally get a break. 542 00:26:01,226 --> 00:26:04,330 -For Democrats, it's a moment of triumph... 543 00:26:04,354 --> 00:26:08,293 The first time they've held the White House in 12 long years. 544 00:26:08,317 --> 00:26:11,004 And while Limbaugh publicly decries Clinton 545 00:26:11,028 --> 00:26:15,091 as a dangerous liberal and a threat to conservative values... 546 00:26:15,115 --> 00:26:18,887 -So, I think it's, uh, pretty much far-left liberalism, 547 00:26:18,911 --> 00:26:22,432 uh, that seeks to... to raise the level of incompetence 548 00:26:22,456 --> 00:26:24,142 to the level of competence. 549 00:26:24,166 --> 00:26:26,352 - privately, he celebrates. 550 00:26:26,376 --> 00:26:28,188 With Clinton as president, 551 00:26:28,212 --> 00:26:31,733 Limbaugh has the perfect target for all his grievances, 552 00:26:31,757 --> 00:26:35,528 and that means more listeners and more money. 553 00:26:35,552 --> 00:26:39,073 -Bill Clinton beats Bush in '92. 554 00:26:39,097 --> 00:26:41,242 '96, Bill Clinton's reelected. 555 00:26:41,266 --> 00:26:43,495 Those are heydays for Rush. 556 00:26:43,519 --> 00:26:48,166 {\an8}The fact that... that Rush had Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton 557 00:26:48,190 --> 00:26:50,710 {\an8}to go after, I think that 558 00:26:50,734 --> 00:26:53,296 {\an8}more than almost anything else 559 00:26:53,320 --> 00:26:55,381 {\an8}really helped grow his show. 560 00:26:55,405 --> 00:26:57,342 -The Clintons give him something to be against. 561 00:26:57,366 --> 00:26:59,260 You know, not only is there a Democrat in the White House 562 00:26:59,284 --> 00:27:02,597 {\an8}trying to do liberal things, but he's a guy who they think 563 00:27:02,621 --> 00:27:05,433 {\an8}is, like, the worst from a moral standpoint. 564 00:27:05,457 --> 00:27:07,852 They're looking for someone who's going to voice that. 565 00:27:07,876 --> 00:27:09,521 And Limbaugh provides them that. 566 00:27:09,545 --> 00:27:12,649 -Yes, he gave voice to a hell of a lot of people 567 00:27:12,673 --> 00:27:14,442 who felt voiceless, 568 00:27:14,466 --> 00:27:17,779 but Rush Limbaugh taught people during the '90s 569 00:27:17,803 --> 00:27:21,491 that it's okay to demonize your political opponents. 570 00:27:21,515 --> 00:27:24,410 -I never did them the way they are doing us 571 00:27:24,434 --> 00:27:25,870 in Washington, D.C., today. 572 00:27:25,894 --> 00:27:27,539 It is wrong 573 00:27:27,563 --> 00:27:30,667 and it is not good for the United States of America. 574 00:27:30,691 --> 00:27:32,585 -Oh, dissent and disagreement 575 00:27:32,609 --> 00:27:35,463 is not good for the United States of America. 576 00:27:35,487 --> 00:27:37,549 [ Baby talk ] We're so sorry, Mr. President. 577 00:27:37,573 --> 00:27:39,008 [ Laughter and applause ] 578 00:27:39,032 --> 00:27:41,469 So sorry. 579 00:27:41,493 --> 00:27:44,305 -He hammered... Hammered Clinton. 580 00:27:44,329 --> 00:27:45,974 {\an8}You know, Trump whined 581 00:27:45,998 --> 00:27:49,894 {\an8}that he was the most picked-on president, like, ever. 582 00:27:49,918 --> 00:27:54,482 But really, before Clinton, there was no president 583 00:27:54,506 --> 00:27:57,235 that was hammered as much as he was. 584 00:27:57,259 --> 00:28:00,655 -When attacking the Clintons proves to be the magic formula 585 00:28:00,679 --> 00:28:03,449 for attracting even bigger audiences, 586 00:28:03,473 --> 00:28:07,537 Rush seems willing to say anything to appease his fans. 587 00:28:07,561 --> 00:28:09,622 That includes ridiculing 588 00:28:09,646 --> 00:28:13,585 the Clintons' 13-year-old daughter, Chelsea. 589 00:28:13,609 --> 00:28:17,654 -Let's take a look, see who is the cute kid in the White House. 590 00:28:19,198 --> 00:28:22,135 No, no, no, no! That's not the kid! That's... 591 00:28:22,159 --> 00:28:24,053 That's the kid! We tried to... 592 00:28:24,077 --> 00:28:26,681 [ Laughter and applause ] 593 00:28:26,705 --> 00:28:28,224 -Like, how hurtful is that? 594 00:28:28,248 --> 00:28:31,644 {\an8}-He was a pioneer in many things, 595 00:28:31,668 --> 00:28:35,815 {\an8}and one of the things he pioneered in was nastiness, 596 00:28:35,839 --> 00:28:39,652 name-calling, and coarseness gone public. 597 00:28:39,676 --> 00:28:43,406 -I got the sense that he was beaten up when he was younger. 598 00:28:43,430 --> 00:28:46,993 And he would then lash out. Projection. 599 00:28:47,017 --> 00:28:50,622 He would lash out and take off after like, I mean, 600 00:28:50,646 --> 00:28:54,417 take off after the way Chelsea Clinton looks. 601 00:28:54,441 --> 00:28:56,628 -I don't think anybody was comfortable with that. 602 00:28:56,652 --> 00:28:58,546 {\an8}Um, I wasn't comfortable with it. 603 00:28:58,570 --> 00:29:00,048 {\an8}Looking back on it, 604 00:29:00,072 --> 00:29:02,342 {\an8}I'm less comfortable today. I have children. 605 00:29:02,366 --> 00:29:04,510 -His own mom calls him up and scolds him for that. 606 00:29:04,534 --> 00:29:06,721 You don't attack children. So, yes, there... 607 00:29:06,745 --> 00:29:09,140 There is some stuff where he's crossing the line, 608 00:29:09,164 --> 00:29:11,059 where it's over the top, but these people 609 00:29:11,083 --> 00:29:13,603 who hate Clinton find a lot of it entertaining. 610 00:29:13,627 --> 00:29:17,023 -By far, the more disturbing aspect of that 611 00:29:17,047 --> 00:29:19,651 was how his audience reacted. 612 00:29:19,675 --> 00:29:23,112 "Whoo! Whoo! Whoo! Whoo!" And they [bleep] ate it up. 613 00:29:23,136 --> 00:29:25,365 -The reaction from Limbaugh's critics 614 00:29:25,389 --> 00:29:27,992 was often just as over-the-top. 615 00:29:28,016 --> 00:29:30,912 -Yeah, I mean, one day, uh, we were opening the mail 616 00:29:30,936 --> 00:29:33,915 and someone sent us feces, human feces in the mail. 617 00:29:33,939 --> 00:29:35,583 FedEx. 618 00:29:35,607 --> 00:29:37,585 I was the one that opened it. 619 00:29:37,609 --> 00:29:40,171 The greatest part is that they spent the money 620 00:29:40,195 --> 00:29:42,674 to overnight it to us, and it's like, 621 00:29:42,698 --> 00:29:46,636 "I'm gonna send poop, and guess how I'm gonna get them 622 00:29:46,660 --> 00:29:49,722 to open it... I'm gonna send it FedEx." 623 00:29:49,746 --> 00:29:52,433 -But the parcel does nothing to stop Limbaugh 624 00:29:52,457 --> 00:29:56,187 from trash-talking the left, including making shit up 625 00:29:56,211 --> 00:29:59,357 if it helps to advance his anti-liberal agenda. 626 00:29:59,381 --> 00:30:07,115 -He says the Clintons send their daughter to a school 627 00:30:07,139 --> 00:30:10,868 where all the eighth graders have to write an essay... 628 00:30:10,892 --> 00:30:13,871 "Why I Feel Guilty Being White." 629 00:30:13,895 --> 00:30:17,458 "CBS News is my source." 630 00:30:17,482 --> 00:30:19,961 There was no CBS News report. 631 00:30:19,985 --> 00:30:22,588 There was no essay. 632 00:30:22,612 --> 00:30:24,257 It would have been very hard 633 00:30:24,281 --> 00:30:28,386 for the 25% of the people at Chelsea Clinton's school 634 00:30:28,410 --> 00:30:30,680 who are nonwhite 635 00:30:30,704 --> 00:30:33,141 to write the mandatory essay. 636 00:30:33,165 --> 00:30:35,852 {\an8}♪♪ 637 00:30:35,876 --> 00:30:37,770 But again, these lies, 638 00:30:37,794 --> 00:30:41,357 these concoctions are in furtherance 639 00:30:41,381 --> 00:30:44,402 of a serious political perspective, 640 00:30:44,426 --> 00:30:47,280 which is white people are oppressed, 641 00:30:47,304 --> 00:30:51,534 the people that are wrecking society are the feminazis, 642 00:30:51,558 --> 00:30:54,662 the homeless, the immigrants, 643 00:30:54,686 --> 00:30:58,499 the gays, and the people dying of AIDS. 644 00:30:58,523 --> 00:31:01,085 And those are the people he would fume about. 645 00:31:01,109 --> 00:31:04,589 {\an8}♪♪ 646 00:31:04,613 --> 00:31:06,549 -Now, this next one, I want to warn you, 647 00:31:06,573 --> 00:31:09,385 {\an8}some of you liberals, you're gonna be unhappy at this. 648 00:31:09,409 --> 00:31:10,660 {\an8}I love it. 649 00:31:13,747 --> 00:31:16,851 {\an8}[ Laughter and applause ] 650 00:31:16,875 --> 00:31:19,562 {\an8}-While taking cheap shots at the Clintons can be ignored 651 00:31:19,586 --> 00:31:21,731 {\an8}as harmless political satire, 652 00:31:21,755 --> 00:31:24,859 {\an8}the rise of the Christian right and right-wing radical groups 653 00:31:24,883 --> 00:31:28,863 makes Limbaugh's rhetoric increasingly dangerous. 654 00:31:28,887 --> 00:31:30,698 -We are for the Second Amendment 655 00:31:30,722 --> 00:31:32,784 and for the American people to arm themselves. 656 00:31:32,808 --> 00:31:36,329 And when we take over, we're gonna level the IRS building. 657 00:31:36,353 --> 00:31:39,916 -Rush said the things that they were told that they couldn't say 658 00:31:39,940 --> 00:31:41,751 or weren't supposed to say. 659 00:31:41,775 --> 00:31:46,464 And it also combined with sort of like the evangelical movement 660 00:31:46,488 --> 00:31:48,591 that was going on at that time. 661 00:31:48,615 --> 00:31:52,470 -Rush Limbaugh came along with a more secular approach, 662 00:31:52,494 --> 00:31:57,058 but the wave he rode in on was televangelism. 663 00:31:57,082 --> 00:32:00,603 He was able to prey on the social resentments 664 00:32:00,627 --> 00:32:03,773 and the resentments against modernity and feminism 665 00:32:03,797 --> 00:32:05,650 and gay rights 666 00:32:05,674 --> 00:32:09,779 that people were getting from right-wing Christian preachers. 667 00:32:09,803 --> 00:32:15,326 -By the end of 1994, Rush has 20 million listeners on radio 668 00:32:15,350 --> 00:32:18,204 and several million viewers on TV. 669 00:32:18,228 --> 00:32:20,289 That gives him an audience similar 670 00:32:20,313 --> 00:32:23,167 to shows like "Seinfeld" and "Friends." 671 00:32:23,191 --> 00:32:25,753 -Those were his, you know, glory days, man. 672 00:32:25,777 --> 00:32:27,713 He's making a shitload of money. 673 00:32:27,737 --> 00:32:31,175 He's eating, he's drinking, he's smoking his cigars. 674 00:32:31,199 --> 00:32:34,679 He's living life large, and he looked like... 675 00:32:34,703 --> 00:32:37,223 On TV, like he'd been living life large. 676 00:32:37,247 --> 00:32:39,267 -Rush is making more and more money. 677 00:32:39,291 --> 00:32:41,310 He's gaining the trappings of success. 678 00:32:41,334 --> 00:32:44,564 I think the best place that you see this is politically 679 00:32:44,588 --> 00:32:48,568 because he becomes a rock star specifically to conservatives. 680 00:32:48,592 --> 00:32:51,404 And maybe the best way of understanding this 681 00:32:51,428 --> 00:32:54,782 is the 1994 Republican revolution. 682 00:32:54,806 --> 00:32:56,993 [ Marching band plays ] 683 00:32:57,017 --> 00:33:00,538 -The revolution, led by Congressman Newt Gingrich, 684 00:33:00,562 --> 00:33:03,666 happens during the midterm elections of '94, 685 00:33:03,690 --> 00:33:05,710 when for the first time in 40 years, 686 00:33:05,734 --> 00:33:08,212 Republicans win a majority in Congress. 687 00:33:08,236 --> 00:33:10,798 It's a major upset for the Democrats, 688 00:33:10,822 --> 00:33:12,967 and Republicans in and out of politics 689 00:33:12,991 --> 00:33:15,261 know exactly who to thank... 690 00:33:15,285 --> 00:33:19,098 Rush Limbaugh and his legions of Dittoheads. 691 00:33:19,122 --> 00:33:21,309 -These are not unimportant people who are like, 692 00:33:21,333 --> 00:33:22,935 "Will you take a picture with me? 693 00:33:22,959 --> 00:33:24,228 Can I have your autograph?" 694 00:33:24,252 --> 00:33:27,773 Like, they treat him like a rock star. 695 00:33:27,797 --> 00:33:31,027 -But just as he's basking in the conservative limelight, 696 00:33:31,051 --> 00:33:34,238 America gets rocked by a homegrown terrorist... 697 00:33:34,262 --> 00:33:35,615 [ Indistinct shouting ] 698 00:33:35,639 --> 00:33:37,158 - who doesn't quite fit 699 00:33:37,182 --> 00:33:40,203 into Limbaugh's carefully crafted world view. 700 00:33:40,227 --> 00:33:42,413 -It's about feeding your audience what you think 701 00:33:42,437 --> 00:33:45,750 they [bleep] want to hear. And Rush Limbaugh knew 702 00:33:45,774 --> 00:33:49,194 that his audience wanted to blame a Muslim. 703 00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:55,927 [ Sirens wailing, indistinct shouting ] 704 00:33:55,951 --> 00:33:58,846 -On April 19, 1995, 705 00:33:58,870 --> 00:34:01,098 the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building 706 00:34:01,122 --> 00:34:02,683 in Oklahoma City 707 00:34:02,707 --> 00:34:05,186 gets hit by a terrorist attack. 708 00:34:05,210 --> 00:34:07,230 The toll is devastating. 709 00:34:07,254 --> 00:34:12,235 168 are confirmed dead, including 19 children. 710 00:34:12,259 --> 00:34:14,737 -Rush Limbaugh was one of many commentators 711 00:34:14,761 --> 00:34:17,031 after the Oklahoma City bombing happened 712 00:34:17,055 --> 00:34:21,702 that immediately rush to assume this is foreign 713 00:34:21,726 --> 00:34:25,915 and "let's retaliate, let's bomb somebody, God damn it." 714 00:34:25,939 --> 00:34:27,792 {\an8}That was par for the course, 715 00:34:27,816 --> 00:34:30,628 {\an8}but Limbaugh had the biggest audience to say that with. 716 00:34:30,652 --> 00:34:32,338 -Within just three days, 717 00:34:32,362 --> 00:34:35,258 the FBI tracks down the real terrorist... 718 00:34:35,282 --> 00:34:38,302 American born and bred Timothy McVeigh. 719 00:34:38,326 --> 00:34:42,306 His motivation... retaliation for the FBI's handling 720 00:34:42,330 --> 00:34:46,269 of the Waco siege in Texas exactly two years earlier. 721 00:34:46,293 --> 00:34:50,481 -And then we learned that the terrorist was connected 722 00:34:50,505 --> 00:34:52,984 to right-wing militia groups, 723 00:34:53,008 --> 00:34:56,320 grew up around Buffalo, New York. 724 00:34:56,344 --> 00:34:59,490 And all of a sudden, it was like, 725 00:34:59,514 --> 00:35:01,450 "I never said those things." 726 00:35:01,474 --> 00:35:06,038 You know, clearly we don't want to be bombing Buffalo, New York. 727 00:35:06,062 --> 00:35:08,958 -The... The thing that a lot of liberals start to feel 728 00:35:08,982 --> 00:35:12,169 is that talk radio hosts are encouraging hate. 729 00:35:12,193 --> 00:35:15,506 Not only are they, you know, preaching kind of hatred 730 00:35:15,530 --> 00:35:18,217 and... and anger towards Democratic politicians... 731 00:35:18,241 --> 00:35:20,094 That this can easily spill over, right? 732 00:35:20,118 --> 00:35:23,180 That if you preach that these people are attacking America, 733 00:35:23,204 --> 00:35:24,890 they're attacking American values, 734 00:35:24,914 --> 00:35:28,269 {\an8}a logical leap for some of the fringe of the audience 735 00:35:28,293 --> 00:35:31,188 that there could be people out there who are moved to violence. 736 00:35:31,212 --> 00:35:37,236 {\an8}-Timothy McVeigh represented a number of disenchanted, 737 00:35:37,260 --> 00:35:40,364 {\an8}loner-type white dudes in America 738 00:35:40,388 --> 00:35:43,284 {\an8}who didn't feel a connection to anything. 739 00:35:43,308 --> 00:35:46,996 Rush Limbaugh would have helped give them a voice. 740 00:35:47,020 --> 00:35:49,457 Rush gave them a home. 741 00:35:49,481 --> 00:35:52,460 -In the aftermath of the Oklahoma City bombing, 742 00:35:52,484 --> 00:35:55,796 as many Americans try to come together and heal, 743 00:35:55,820 --> 00:35:57,840 Rush Limbaugh downplays the role 744 00:35:57,864 --> 00:36:00,843 that white conservatism played in the tragedy 745 00:36:00,867 --> 00:36:06,432 and continues his obsession with poking fun at the Clintons. 746 00:36:06,456 --> 00:36:08,768 -Well, look at it this way, sir. If you aren't reelected, 747 00:36:08,792 --> 00:36:10,603 you'll have more time to practice your golf game. 748 00:36:10,627 --> 00:36:14,357 - I'm looking forward to that. - Oh, so are we. 749 00:36:14,381 --> 00:36:17,068 -The pleasure Rush gets from speaking falsehoods 750 00:36:17,092 --> 00:36:21,447 is only matched by his love of spreading fake conspiracies. 751 00:36:21,471 --> 00:36:24,784 Case in point, Jeff Cohen remembers when Limbaugh tried 752 00:36:24,808 --> 00:36:29,246 to pin a fictional murder on Hillary Clinton. 753 00:36:29,270 --> 00:36:31,290 -He went on the air breathlessly 754 00:36:31,314 --> 00:36:35,669 to read something he got, like, faxed to him. 755 00:36:35,693 --> 00:36:37,505 ♪♪ 756 00:36:37,529 --> 00:36:39,799 -Okay, folks, I think I got enough information here 757 00:36:39,823 --> 00:36:41,967 to tell you the contents of this fax that I got. 758 00:36:41,991 --> 00:36:43,636 Brace yourselves. 759 00:36:43,660 --> 00:36:45,971 There's a Washington consulting firm 760 00:36:45,995 --> 00:36:48,474 that is scheduled to release a report this afternoon 761 00:36:48,498 --> 00:36:50,976 that will appear, that will be published 762 00:36:51,000 --> 00:36:54,939 that claims that Vince Foster was murdered in an apartment 763 00:36:54,963 --> 00:36:56,816 owned by Hillary Clinton, and the body 764 00:36:56,840 --> 00:36:59,318 was then taken to Fort Marcy Park. 765 00:36:59,342 --> 00:37:02,738 {\an8}♪♪ 766 00:37:02,762 --> 00:37:04,407 -Rush Limbaugh in action. 767 00:37:04,431 --> 00:37:06,909 -Vince Foster was the associate White House counsel 768 00:37:06,933 --> 00:37:08,577 who had committed suicide. 769 00:37:08,601 --> 00:37:11,080 There's never been any evidence otherwise. 770 00:37:11,104 --> 00:37:13,165 -I mean, how do you go on the air 771 00:37:13,189 --> 00:37:15,668 when you get something off of the fax machine 772 00:37:15,692 --> 00:37:20,005 accusing the first lady of the United States of murder? 773 00:37:20,029 --> 00:37:25,052 {\an3}It was part of this conspiracy crap that he was so good at, 774 00:37:25,076 --> 00:37:30,182 you know, at telling, was these giant conspiracies. 775 00:37:30,206 --> 00:37:32,059 -The conspiracies don't sit well 776 00:37:32,083 --> 00:37:34,562 with his more mainstream TV viewers. 777 00:37:34,586 --> 00:37:38,858 And in the summer of 1996, his show is canceled. 778 00:37:38,882 --> 00:37:41,402 -In today's Washington Watch, Rush Limbaugh 779 00:37:41,426 --> 00:37:44,113 is reportedly dropping his syndicated television show. 780 00:37:44,137 --> 00:37:47,575 -While Rush focuses on his three-hour radio show, 781 00:37:47,599 --> 00:37:52,746 his old friend and soulmate Roger Ailes launches Fox News. 782 00:37:52,770 --> 00:37:56,709 Using Rush as the template, Fox spawns a slew of hosts 783 00:37:56,733 --> 00:38:00,045 who channel Limbaugh's conservative fury. 784 00:38:00,069 --> 00:38:03,174 {\an8}-What you see today is all a derivation of Rush Limbaugh, 785 00:38:03,198 --> 00:38:05,676 {\an8}Sean Hannity, I mean, Bill O'Reilly... 786 00:38:05,700 --> 00:38:07,470 {\an8}these guys just didn't know how to do it. 787 00:38:07,494 --> 00:38:09,680 They didn't have the verve he had. 788 00:38:09,704 --> 00:38:12,600 -Then, when Bill Clinton leaves the White House, 789 00:38:12,624 --> 00:38:15,936 Rush Limbaugh loses his favorite punching bag. 790 00:38:15,960 --> 00:38:20,733 -He really needed to be the opposition. 791 00:38:20,757 --> 00:38:22,276 It's not helpful for him 792 00:38:22,300 --> 00:38:25,362 when George Bush the second becomes president, 793 00:38:25,386 --> 00:38:30,785 'cause he needs to be bashing away at the Democrats in power. 794 00:38:30,809 --> 00:38:33,746 -And while he's left to reminisce about the evil deeds 795 00:38:33,770 --> 00:38:35,456 of Bill and Hillary, 796 00:38:35,480 --> 00:38:38,792 Limbaugh will soon find himself in the grip of a vice 797 00:38:38,816 --> 00:38:41,504 he spent his career railing against. 798 00:38:41,528 --> 00:38:46,115 -Like millions of people, he got hooked on opiates. 799 00:38:50,828 --> 00:38:52,473 -In 2003, the mainstream media 800 00:38:52,497 --> 00:38:56,018 gives Rush Limbaugh yet another chance on TV 801 00:38:56,042 --> 00:39:00,564 when ESPN hires him to commentate on NFL football. 802 00:39:00,588 --> 00:39:02,441 -He only lasts like four or five weeks 803 00:39:02,465 --> 00:39:04,902 because he... he starts talking about Donovan McNabb 804 00:39:04,926 --> 00:39:06,570 of the Philadelphia Eagles 805 00:39:06,594 --> 00:39:08,364 and Black quarterbacks. 806 00:39:08,388 --> 00:39:10,241 -The media has been very desirous 807 00:39:10,265 --> 00:39:11,992 that a Black quarterback to do well. 808 00:39:12,016 --> 00:39:16,705 -It says something about U.S. corporate greed 809 00:39:16,729 --> 00:39:19,208 that they would take a guy like Rush Limbaugh 810 00:39:19,232 --> 00:39:22,670 with his... his history of racial contempt. 811 00:39:22,694 --> 00:39:25,714 -That history will get another chapter when Limbaugh 812 00:39:25,738 --> 00:39:29,426 says the following a few years later on his radio show. 813 00:39:29,450 --> 00:39:30,844 -Let me put it to you this way... 814 00:39:30,868 --> 00:39:33,305 The NFL all too often looks like a game 815 00:39:33,329 --> 00:39:35,432 between the Bloods and the Crips. 816 00:39:35,456 --> 00:39:40,646 -Three years later, in 2006, the king of right-wing media 817 00:39:40,670 --> 00:39:43,774 reveals the true depths of his hypocrisy 818 00:39:43,798 --> 00:39:46,944 when he's arrested on prescription drug charges. 819 00:39:46,968 --> 00:39:50,990 -I remember Rush in the '90s railed against, 820 00:39:51,014 --> 00:39:53,576 you know, people who did drugs and drug addicts. 821 00:39:53,600 --> 00:39:55,869 And my... my dad agreed with him... 822 00:39:55,893 --> 00:39:57,955 "Yeah, they should just be locked up 823 00:39:57,979 --> 00:39:59,915 and throw away the key." 824 00:39:59,939 --> 00:40:03,210 -He admits he went around doctor shopping, 825 00:40:03,234 --> 00:40:05,838 getting these drugs from different doctors. 826 00:40:05,862 --> 00:40:09,550 And the prosecutor has an open-and-shut case, 827 00:40:09,574 --> 00:40:11,218 but drops the charge. 828 00:40:11,242 --> 00:40:14,597 -He looks a little bit hypocritical when he confesses 829 00:40:14,621 --> 00:40:18,851 that he has drug addiction and cuts a deal on, 830 00:40:18,875 --> 00:40:20,853 you know, criminal charges and things. 831 00:40:20,877 --> 00:40:24,064 -The drug war affected poor people and people of color, 832 00:40:24,088 --> 00:40:27,401 the kind of people Rush Limbaugh belittled for decades, 833 00:40:27,425 --> 00:40:29,695 and the Rush Limbaughs of the world got off. 834 00:40:29,719 --> 00:40:33,574 -By the time that Rush's own addiction came out, 835 00:40:33,598 --> 00:40:37,911 the Rush community was a full-on cult. 836 00:40:37,935 --> 00:40:41,665 And so, the cult leader can do no wrong. 837 00:40:41,689 --> 00:40:43,500 -And that's certainly true 838 00:40:43,524 --> 00:40:46,920 when Limbaugh begins spreading the falsehood to his listeners 839 00:40:46,944 --> 00:40:51,884 that Barack Obama isn't really a natural-born American citizen. 840 00:40:51,908 --> 00:40:55,763 -He was one of the birthers that at the same time 841 00:40:55,787 --> 00:40:58,182 that Donald Trump was questioning 842 00:40:58,206 --> 00:41:00,434 that Obama is not a legitimate president 843 00:41:00,458 --> 00:41:02,728 because he wasn't born in the United States, 844 00:41:02,752 --> 00:41:05,230 Limbaugh was doing that conspiracy, 845 00:41:05,254 --> 00:41:06,899 that fake conspiracy. 846 00:41:06,923 --> 00:41:09,443 -I think Rush Limbaugh knew that was bullshit, 847 00:41:09,467 --> 00:41:12,154 and yet he still put it out there. 848 00:41:12,178 --> 00:41:15,783 Now, to me, I find that to be a lot more dangerous 849 00:41:15,807 --> 00:41:17,660 than some idiot 850 00:41:17,684 --> 00:41:21,789 who actually believes that Obama is not an American citizen. 851 00:41:21,813 --> 00:41:24,333 Trump's a dumbass, so Trump doesn't know what he's doing. 852 00:41:24,357 --> 00:41:26,710 But Rush? Rush knew. 853 00:41:26,734 --> 00:41:30,172 -The reason that Trump was so effective with fake news, 854 00:41:30,196 --> 00:41:32,841 "don't believe journalism"... 855 00:41:32,865 --> 00:41:34,426 It started with Limbaugh. 856 00:41:34,450 --> 00:41:36,637 -Trump came along in 2016. 857 00:41:36,661 --> 00:41:42,643 Why was he so able to so easily demagogue? 858 00:41:42,667 --> 00:41:45,771 Because he came along to a group of people 859 00:41:45,795 --> 00:41:48,816 who were perfectly okay being lied to. 860 00:41:48,840 --> 00:41:50,526 -Then, in 2020, 861 00:41:50,550 --> 00:41:53,946 Rush Limbaugh announces that he has Stage 4 lung cancer 862 00:41:53,970 --> 00:41:56,990 and that he won't be spending as much time on the air. 863 00:41:57,014 --> 00:41:59,618 -There's an immediate outpouring from the radio industry 864 00:41:59,642 --> 00:42:02,246 and the conservative media worlds wishing him well, 865 00:42:02,270 --> 00:42:05,040 and Trump gives him the Medal of Freedom 866 00:42:05,064 --> 00:42:07,626 at the 2020 State of the Union Address. 867 00:42:07,650 --> 00:42:09,628 -The first lady of the United States 868 00:42:09,652 --> 00:42:13,257 to present you with the honor, please. 869 00:42:13,281 --> 00:42:15,342 [ Cheers and applause ] 870 00:42:15,366 --> 00:42:19,304 -That to me is an insult to gay people, 871 00:42:19,328 --> 00:42:21,807 women, people of color. 872 00:42:21,831 --> 00:42:24,351 It's just an insult. And no one cares. 873 00:42:24,375 --> 00:42:26,353 The modern Republican Party 874 00:42:26,377 --> 00:42:29,648 has been reshaped in Limbaugh's image. 875 00:42:29,672 --> 00:42:31,316 That's what has to be understood. 876 00:42:31,340 --> 00:42:34,445 -After 30 years of that guy on the radio 877 00:42:34,469 --> 00:42:38,741 spewing disinformation and lies to the point where 878 00:42:38,765 --> 00:42:42,953 the entire base of the Republican Party right now 879 00:42:42,977 --> 00:42:46,498 no longer believes in basic truths... 880 00:42:46,522 --> 00:42:49,293 I mean, think about that. 881 00:42:49,317 --> 00:42:53,005 -Six weeks before his death in February 2021, 882 00:42:53,029 --> 00:42:54,840 Limbaugh is still at it, 883 00:42:54,864 --> 00:42:57,676 claiming election fraud on behalf of Trump 884 00:42:57,700 --> 00:43:01,513 and helping incite the insurrection on Capitol Hill. 885 00:43:01,537 --> 00:43:03,390 -There's simply no way Joe Biden 886 00:43:03,414 --> 00:43:05,267 was legitimately elected president. 887 00:43:05,291 --> 00:43:10,022 -When you talk about the extremism of the American right, 888 00:43:10,046 --> 00:43:11,899 Limbaugh probably played a bigger role 889 00:43:11,923 --> 00:43:16,653 than anyone alive or dead to do that, to shape that. 890 00:43:16,677 --> 00:43:20,741 -I have fond memories, and, um, I've never said a bad word 891 00:43:20,765 --> 00:43:22,618 about the guy and I never would. 892 00:43:22,642 --> 00:43:24,703 Um, he's... 893 00:43:24,727 --> 00:43:27,414 You can disagree with him. Uh... 894 00:43:27,438 --> 00:43:29,500 Good people can disagree with him, 895 00:43:29,524 --> 00:43:31,585 and have, and... And will continue. 896 00:43:31,609 --> 00:43:35,547 -His legacy is division. He purposely divided America. 897 00:43:35,571 --> 00:43:37,299 He's not the only one, 898 00:43:37,323 --> 00:43:39,468 and there's plenty of blame to go around, 899 00:43:39,492 --> 00:43:41,720 {\an8}but he had a huge microphone. 900 00:43:41,744 --> 00:43:45,057 {\an8}America right now is dangerously divided. 901 00:43:45,081 --> 00:43:47,726 {\an8}-Jews will not replace us! 902 00:43:47,750 --> 00:43:51,647 {\an8}-Rush Limbaugh played a huge hand in that. 903 00:43:51,671 --> 00:43:54,983 {\an8}-It's immeasurable, the... the damage 904 00:43:55,007 --> 00:43:58,612 {\an8}that Rush Limbaugh has caused to society. 905 00:43:58,636 --> 00:44:06,636 {\an8}♪♪