Unofficial Summary of the Rush Limbaugh Show for Thursday, June 9, 1994 by John Switzer This unofficial summary is copyright (c) 1994 by John Switzer. All Rights Reserved. These summaries are distributed on CompuServe and the Internet, and archived on CompuServe (DL9 of the ISSUES forum) and Internet (cathouse.org and grind.isca.uiowa.edu). WWW users can access http://neptune.corp.harris.com/rush.html The /pub/jrs directory at ftp.netcom.com contains the summaries for the past 30 days. Distribution to other electronic forums and bulletin boards is highly encouraged. Spelling and other corrections gratefully received. Please read the standard disclaimer which was included with the first summary for this month. In particular, please note that this summary is not approved or sanctioned by Rush Limbaugh or the EIB network, nor do I have any connection with them other than as a daily listener. ************************************************************* June 9, 1994 BRIEF SUMMARY OF TOPICS: Diana Rigg is named Dame Commander; black families in Queens surpass white families in median income; Clinton's replacing the American flag on an Italian grave was a setup, just like his building of a cross out of stones on Omaha Beach; Rush to show pictures of his new bride on his TV show; Liz Smith quotes from Sunday Times story on Jackie O. after Rush has already read from it; plants in the Alps are moving to higher ground, ostensibly because of global warming; Democratic caller insists that Clinton is a conservative and is doing far more than Reagan or Bush ever did; caller says Rush, with his two divorces, shouldn't criticize Clinton, who decided to work his problems out with his wife instead of divorcing her; caller supports Clinton's actions during Vietnam War; Rush notes he is not the only one criticizing President Clinton, and even the British press says that Clinton's honorary degree from Oxford was an honor that is seldom given "to a man who deserves it so little"; caller thinks Clinton was sincere with his D-Day speeches and tributes; caller doesn't think Clinton and Algore are true liberals; Woodward's book quotes Stephanopoulos as saying that Clinton would switch to different feelings and attitudes about the issues, given the nature of the audiences he was addressing; Japan won't support Clinton's economic sanctions against North Korea because they won't work; Kennedy's health care plan gets out of committee, but his is not the plan to watch because Moynihan's is the one which will determine the shape of an eventual health care bill; real estate ads are becoming politically correct; caller doesn't think people should be able to read Playboy in public places; it's time that Patti Davis become her own woman and stop trying to make a living by embarrassing her parents; caller agrees with Rush that the issue of reading Playboy in a firehouse is about First Amendment rights, not about sexual harassment; San Francisco voters pass law banning panhandling and begging within 30 feet of ATM machines, and the ACLU is unhappy; Bill Clinton's PSA for his legal defense fund; Woodward's book was written on "deep background," with first-hand sources; Senator Hank Brown introduces bill to block EEOC's religious harassment rules from being enforced; caller troubled by Bob Dole's lack of real leadership; attacks against "religious right" by left have begun in earnest; California economy getting better because of NAFTA and increased exports to Mexico; partial inventory of Rostenkowski's stash of government items in his Chicago warehouse; state budgets of NY and Massachusetts show what works and what doesn't; FBI investigating whether Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy received gifts from Tyson Foods; caller is angry that Clinton is using D-Day events for his political benefit; Democratic policies have created the crime that their crime bill is supposed to fix; Lo Bianco publicly upbraided for his sloth in turning on the official EIB mike; Rush has no worries about his show's continued success should Clinton be voted out of office; journalist left full-time job because she couldn't take the hypocrisy anymore; caller and Rush's wife share common interest in publications aimed at and written by children; Rush certain that his marriage will have a continuous honeymoon; liberals trying to defend Clinton by attacking Ronald Reagan's service record, but Reagan served honorably, to the best of his abilities; people are upset with Clinton because he still holds the military in contempt, not because he didn't serve; caller afraid Rush is turning into a wimp, now that he's married. LIMBAUGH WATCH June 9, 1994 - It's now (allegedly) day 506 (day 525 for the rich and the dead) of "America Held Hostage" (aka the "Raw Deal") and 583 days after Bill Clinton's election, but Rush is still on the air with 640 radio affiliates (with more than 22 million listeners weekly world-wide), 234 TV affiliates (with a national rating of 3.7), and a newsletter with over 440,000 subscribers. His first book was on the NY Times hardback non-fiction best- seller list for 54 consecutive weeks, with 2.6 million copies sold, but fell off the list after Simon and Schuster stopped printing it. The paperback version of "The Way Things Ought To Be" was on the NY Times paperback non-fiction best-seller list for 28 weeks. Rush's second book, "See, I Told You So," was on the NY Times best-seller list for 16 weeks and has sold over 2.25 million copies. NEWS o Queen Elizabeth II last Saturday named actress Diana Rigg, 56, a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, an honor equivalent to a knighthood. Rigg was part of a group of 1,000 British subjects who were given various honors by Queen Elizabeth II as part of the royal 68th birthday ceremonies. LEST WE FORGET The following are from the Rush Limbaugh show on Thursday, June 11, 1992: o Larry from Phoenix, AZ was angry that President Bush was "waffling in the wind," refusing to play hardball with either Congress or at the Earth Summit. o Ross Perot stated that abortion "is a woman's choice," but added "I want to go further than that. Each human life is precious. We should not create a human life unless we want to create it. It is absolutely irresponsible for thinking, reasoning human beings to thoughtlessly create a human life they don't want." o Rush read an example of the typical Perot-related letters he was receiving: "Perot is not going to spend all his time fishing and golfing to prove his manhood. He's just going to win an election and the next one. I know it's going to happen, and I'll write to you again on the fourth of November. Meanwhile, you're dangerously getting out of tune with your public, and worse, boring the public with relentless tantrums on true trivia, but blindness to big issues. One of these issues is that the country needs to mobilize, to make `made in the USA' valid again. Ross and us believers in the industry are going to do it with or without your help. Putting your large person in the way of this parade will only make the parade larger, and you much smaller. "Anyway, Rush, you already have had your day in the sun; let Ross have his and stop foaming at the mouth. And by the way, changing that quickstep tune for Ross Perot to the new more gloomy version of it only shows to all who want to see it how soured and scared you conventional journalists are when someone brilliant steals your soapbox. Move over, Rush, for most of us ex-listeners, the meaningful part of your life is now solidly behind you." o It was reported that Ross Perot had invested $26 million in NeXT, the computer company founded by Steven Jobs, one of the founders of Apple Computers. When NeXT was originally announced, no details about the computer were announced except that it would be available only to schools and colleges. However, as the development continued, a steady stream of college administrators, deans, and professors were invited to Dallas to meet with Perot, ostensibly to tell him what the NeXT computer should be. About 500 such people were flown in to give their input to Perot; however, the real goal of these meetings was not to get any input at all. In reality, these meetings were slick sales jobs designed to get the college personnel to sing the praises of these machines when they went back to their schools. Rush found this news item to be interesting since Perot was doing the same thing by meeting with a number of mayors, all of whom said that Perot was very attentive in listening to them. However, what the mayors were really doing was singing Perot's praises when they went home. o Edward Parsons, the homosexual lover of deceased West Palm Beach dentist David Acer, told the Palm Beach Post that the AIDS-infected dentist had deliberately infected at least two of his patients, Kimberly Bergalis and Barbara Webb, with the disease. Parsons said that Acer had told him he took the action because he was upset that AIDS was being ignored by mainstream America. o Oklahoma state representative Tim Pope reported that Anita Hill was taking a 9-month sabbatical from Oklahoma University, during which she would be paid $30,000, half her normal salary. Hill stated she wanted to do the following things on her sabbatical: - To put together "an interdisciplinary conference that focuses on race and gender." - Write a manuscript on sexual harassment that would be published for use by legal practitioners and the federal courts. - Work with a group of academic administrators and businesswomen to explore the idea of starting a policy and research institute that would focus on issues affecting black women. o Bungee Condoms quickly joined forces with EIB to address the growing danger posed by Super Soaker squirt guns by airing a new public service announcement: <> Bungee Condom Corporation has responded to the national Super Soaker emergency. Thanks to a grant from Squirt Up, the Air National Guard is presently dropping millions of Super Soaker Condoms by helicopter into major cities. <> Look, mom, it's raining. I'm going out to play. <> Be sure and wear your rubber. <> Hi, I'm a bungee jumper. I thought bungee jumping was dangerous until I got me a Super Soaker. Watch! Hey fella, hot enough for you? <> Why, you! <> <> Whoah! As you can tell, if you have a Super Soaker, you must practice safe soaks. When you get your Super Soaker Bungee Condom, follow these simple instructions: just place it over the nozzle of your Super Soaker <> and pull back like . . . <>. Oh, darn it, wait a minute, wait! You got to stretch it out like that . . . <>. Oh, heck! <> The Super Soaker Condom from Bungee Condoms, because at Bungee Condoms we always come through in the stretch. <> I've got it! Now squirt to your heart's content! <> Oops. Now that's darn embarrassing! o Molly from Akron, OH, a blind housewife with four children, thanked Rush for supporting motherhood and stay-at-home moms. She added that the politically correct term for motherhood was "parasitically oppressed"; the screams of a "little parasite" in the background seemed to prove her point. o A caller from Minneapolis, MN reported that members of a "feminist lesbian forum" on the public radio station were upset that Hill had cancelled her appearance in the Twin Cities for a fund-raiser to create an Anita Hill Chair at Oklahoma University; Hill allegedly cancelled her speech because she wasn't being paid for it. The official spin on the story, though, was that enough money had already been collected for the Chair, so the fund- raiser wasn't needed. ******** MORNING UPDATE Last year Rush pointed out a story of major significance: that black families in Queens had achieved economic parity with whites. However, a new analysis of the 1990 Census conducted for the NY Times is reporting that blacks living in Queens have surpassed whites in terms of median incomes; the media income for all blacks living in Queens was $34,300, while that for whites was only $34,000. Black married couples born in America had median incomes of $50,000, which was also more than that for equivalent white couples. This success for blacks came in the 80s, the so-called "Decade of Greed," showing that black families which worked hard were not left out of the success, contrary to what failed NYC mayor David Dinkins continually said. Also, black entrepreneurs, both native-born and immigrants, started their own businesses in record numbers and prospered, mirroring the success of other entrepreneurs of the 80s. Finally, married couples working together give families the best chance to succeed, contrary to whatever Murphy Brown might have to say. This is a major victory, not just because blacks are succeeding, but because it demonstrates that the American dream is alive for all those who want to access the opportunities that exist in America. FIRST HOUR Items o "Never, ever trust a draft dodger," Rush exclaims, recalling how yesterday he recounted that the picture of President Clinton strolling along Omaha Beach and building a cross out of stones was an entirely staged event, with White House aides placing the stones and cameras at precisely the right place for the perfect photo-op. Rush showed the videotape of this last night, frame by frame, illustrating how the shadows showed that White House aides were standing just out of camera range. Rush also noted that the only stones on the beach were those in the conveniently placed pile. The most important aspect of this, though, is that before Clinton ever left for Europe on this trip, the White House kept insisting that Clinton was going not for himself but to honor those who served in the military. Yet this photo-op was planned solely to praise Clinton, not the troops. Rush notes that the only reason Clinton took a walk on the beach was because the cameras were there, which is why Rush despises cameras - they change the way people behave. Yet most of those in the press will never explain how the cameras lie about what they see; in fact, for Clinton to talk that twilight walk along the beach meant he had to go out for his walk at close to 11 p.m., given that this is when it gets dark in Normandy at this time of year. If Rush were running the White House, though, he'd have scheduled a lonely walk along Omaha Beach for the President, without having any cameras there. Instead, he would have just told print reporters about it, so that they could have written stories about the President walking along the beach in solitude and seclusion, obviously being in deep thought and very moved by the events he was participating in. The White House, though, decided to stage an obviously phony photo-op. However, this is not the end of the story. After last night's TV show, Rush's TV producer Dick Mincer told Rush he was having some second thoughts about footage he had of Clinton walking through a military cemetery in Italy. In the videoclip, Clinton comes across an American grave with a flag that's lying on its side; Clinton kneels over and replants the flag upright. Mincer wondered if this was staged, too, so Rush made plans to view this clip more closely some time today. However, right before the show started this morning, Rep. Bob Dornan (R-CA), who knew nothing about Rush's and Mincer's suspicions, called up to report that Senator Robert Smith (R-NH) gave him a first-hand account of how White House aides went to the Anzio Battlefield Cemetery and took the American flags down, laying them on their sides, precisely so that Clinton could replant one as he did. Thus, it's yet another example of "how can we fool them again today," and Rush congratulates his producer, Dick Mincer, for his accurate instincts. Rush notes, though, that the ultimate sign of disrespect to the flag is to deliberately put it on the ground, but this is what White House aides actually did, solely so as to make the President look good. Rush promises to show this scene on his TV show tonight. o Rush asks his chief of staff, H.R. "Kit" Carson, to tell his secretary, formerly known as Mrs. Wiggins, but now addressed as "Wilma Flintstone," to bring him his briefcase. However, he doesn't want his new desk scratched, so he insists that the briefcase be lifted gently from the desk, as if it were a tray. Rush explains that he asked for this because he's been inundated with requests for pictures of his wife Marta, and he brought some with him today to show them on his TV show. o The British newspapers have been covering Clinton's trip to Oxford, and they are full of thoughts that no American press would ever report. Rush adds that Liz Smith quotes from the story about Jackie Kennedy that was in the Sunday Times of London; Rush, of course, described this story in detail yesterday, proving how he is ever on the cutting edge of societal evolution. Smith probably thinks she scooped everyone, but as is usual, Rush's listeners knew about it before anyone else. *BREAK* Items o Rush promises to show some pictures of his new bride, "the lovely and gracious, astoundingly intelligent, insightful, strong, tough, conservative, committed babe, Marta Limbaugh," on his TV show tonight. o Plants in the Alps are moving to higher ground because of global warming, say some scientists quoted in the journal Nature. Over the past 70 years, plants have moved up some 6 to 13 feet, as they seek cooler temperatures. Rush hopes people don't believe this stuff because there is no global warming; there has been no evidence that temperatures are going up, and it was only 20 years ago that the big fear was global cooling, with scientists warning of massive glaciers moving south. Thus, there is no need for panic, and there is time to get more facts and details about such things. Phone Robert from Passaic, NJ Robert congratulates Rush on his wedding and hopes Rush soon experiences the pleasures that Robert has gotten from his four kids. He notes that he listens to Rush all the time, but while he used to agree with Rush a lot, that is no longer the case. Robert is the co-chair of the local chapter of the National Jewish Democratic Council and he still supports President Clinton, so he thinks Rush is doing the nation a great disservice with his constant berating of the President and Hillary. Robert thinks Clinton is doing a great job and that all of the bills he's gotten passed will benefit all Americans. Robert did vote for Ronald Reagan twice and George Bush once, but Bill Clinton, as a conservative, middle-of-the-road Democrat is far better for the country. Rush thinks Robert has to be a plant since nobody could claim that Clinton's is a conservative administration. Robert says that educational voucher programs aren't conservative, since they are basically government giveaways. Rush says Clinton has never supported vouchers, so they're a moot point when it comes to discussing the merits of his administration. Robert says the Democratic National Convention proved that Clinton is a conservative; Jesse Jackson and Jerry Brown weren't allowed to speak, which was quite a change from the 1988 convention. Rush says the 1992 convention was not a conservative convention, although the Clinton campaign did try to fool Americans into believing he was a moderate and "new" Democrat. Clinton's policies and programs definitely show that he is not a conservative by any stretch of the imagination. Robert asks Rush to tell him one bill that was passed when George Bush was President, and Rush replies "the 1990 Budget Act which ruined America." He asks Robert to hang on through the break. *BREAK* Phone Robert from Passaic, NJ (continued) Robert says he's not a plant, but is just excited that things are finally happening in America after the Reagan and Bush years. "Nothing has happened in 12 years!" he insists. Rush, though, points out that Clinton himself has said a lot of things have happened in those 12 years, all bad, and Rush bets that Robert's insistence that Clinton is a conservative is sending the White House rushing to their radios. "He is not a liberal!" Robert insists, adding that the Brady Bill, the Assault Weapons Ban, the National Service Act, the "jobs bill," and the Crime Bill are all conservative bills. Rush points out that there is no crime bill yet, and the "jobs bill" is Clinton's economics plan, which is liberal "tax the rich and redistribute wealth" politics at its best. The Clinton health care plan is the biggest move to the left that the country has had in 50 years, being the first plan in that era to socialize an entire segment of the nation's economy. There is nothing conservative about the Clinton administration, except perhaps NAFTA, and Rush praised Clinton at the time for supporting NAFTA. Phone Pat from St. Louis, MO Pat has listened to Rush only so she could be an informed caller when she eventually did call. She notes that Rush has constantly criticized Rush for his character, yet Rush and Marta have six marriages between them now; "what about your character?" she asks, saying that Rush is throwing stones at someone while living in a glass house himself. Rush says Pat can feel free to criticize his character if she so desires, but he is not living in a glass house. He asks Pat to draw comparisons between having a divorce, and having multiple affairs. Besides, Rush's character assessments of Clinton are not just about his sexual peccadillos; by far the most important problems with Clinton's character have to do with his lack of honesty, and everyone is admitting this now. Even George Stephanopoulos is quoted in "The Agenda" as admitting that nobody knows what Clinton believes. Pat says Rush has criticized Clinton for his sexual escapades, but Bill and Hillary had the character to work their marriage problems out and keep the marriage together for the sake of their child, as opposed to taking the easy way out of divorce. It's one thing to accuse Clinton on foreign policy or financial misdeeds, but Pat doesn't think Rush has any credibility with which to attack him on things like the Paula Jones or Gennifer Flowers issues. Rush notes that he has only reported what is going on about Jones, and Flowers has tapes to back her story up, as has been reported. In fact, Rush is the one who has been saying that Republicans should ignore Jones's charges of sexual harassment since this case will be decided in court. Pat, though, thinks Rush has a "pretty nifty way" of hiding behind his excuse that he's just a reporter, but "your mega- groupy, ditto-groupy people that call in all the time will make snide remarks all the time, and you just snicker!" Thus, Pat thinks Rush is personally attacking Clinton through his listeners as well as personally himself. Rush says he is not making personal attacks, although he is challenging Clinton's character. However, Rush doesn't care about what Clinton does in his own time unless it affects his Presidency. The bottom line is that Rush doesn't think Clinton is trustworthy, credible, or believable; this President doesn't even take a position until his polls and focus groups tell him which one he should take. Pat says that Rush is judging Clinton day in and day out, but Rush says he is just reporting the facts. He wonders if it bothers Pat that Clinton stages obviously phony scenes, such as the cross-building on Omaha Beach. Pat says "every President of the United States has an obligation to go over and represent the country, and to be the President of the United States, you've got to be an egotistical person to start with." Thus, she thinks that getting good press coverage is part of the job, and she doesn't feel she is manipulated by Clinton since she was manipulated by Reagan and Bush for 12 years. Rush is finally glad to hear that Pat is just a Democrat, but he wonders why people don't state their biases honestly, as he is willing to do. He once again states that the reason Clinton's honesty and integrity matter is because he's proposing one of the most leftward and sweeping expansion of government ever seen. As such, people ought to be able to judge whether Clinton is being honest with them as to matters such as health care; after all, if people are basing their judgment on the Clinton health care plan on his saying it will work, doesn't it matter if Clinton's word can be trusted? Rush therefore wants to alert the people to the phoniness, dishonesty, disingenuousness, and deceptiveness that comes out of this administration. Clinton actually said while in Normandy that he loved the military while growing up, yet a letter he wrote in 1969 proves otherwise. Rush points these things out so people can know what kind of man they are dealing with. Pat says that she is only one year older than Clinton, and she didn't agree with the Vietnam War either, so she has no problem with what Clinton did. However, she does think Clinton likes the military. Rush disagrees, and he notes that it is people like Pat who think there is nothing wrong with what Clinton, now the President of the U.S., did while demonstrating against his own country, that "scare the beegeebuz out of me." Pat asks what Rush's military status is, and he replies that he supports the military. He did not serve in the military when he was young, and the reasons why are common knowledge. Rush had a high lottery number and student deferments, and every attempt to dig up some "dirt" on him about this has failed. Pat, though, says that there was constant deception in Iran- Contra, and Rush notes that at the time he was celebrating this scheme which was about overcharging the Ayatollah so as to support the Contras. Pat says North and Reagan lied to the American people, but Rush notes North told the truth to the American people, while lying to the Senate. Pat says she no longer listens to Rush anymore, but wanted to tell Rush that it's horrible how day-in and day-out he does nothing but criticize Clinton who has made some great gains for this country, such as NAFTA. Rush notes that he supported Clinton in this, and in fact, Clinton probably owes Rush a debt for helping get NAFTA passed. Pat says that health care has to be dealt with, and she would love to see a single-payer system because "people are suffering day-in and day-out and everyone should have the opportunity to be taken care of." Rush asks if everyone should be given food, too, and Pat agrees. Rush asks about a car, and Pat thinks that's taking it too far. Rush, though, says that if health care is a right and if food is a right, then why not a job and why not a car and why not a house, clothing, and every other need? He notes that the reason people are having trouble paying for their health care is because it's gotten so expensive, but the reason for that is that the government got involved. He hopes Pat continues listening, though, because he, ever the optimist, thinks there's still hope for her. *BREAK* Rush is amazed at how EIB is being overrun by supporters of the President, and he wonders if there is any organized effort out there for this. Whether that's the case or not, Rush is not the only one criticizing Bill Clinton, as proven by how the London Independent is reporting that when it comes to Clinton's receiving an honorary degree yesterday from Oxford, "seldom is such an honor granted to a man who deserves it so little." This same paper also wondered how the Oxford chancellor would translate into Latin, used for the honorary degree, "Whitewater sleaze," "draft dodger," "flip-flop on Bosnia, Haiti, or Somalia," "climb down on human rights in China," and "dithering over North Korea nuclear bombs." Rush notes "this isn't me, it's the Brits," and he points out that not even the modern-day students of Oxford like Clinton, although that's probably because he didn't inhale. Phone Harry from Chicago, IL Harry gives dittos and agrees with about 90% of what Rush says. However, once in a while he thinks Rush is criticizing Clinton improperly, such as how he criticized Clinton's speeches for D- Day. Harry thinks that what Clinton had to say was sincere, accurate, and warm. Rush says he doesn't think that Clinton was said, although he did deliver that speech well. Rush doesn't think there is a sincere bone in Clinton's body, and Woodward's book "The Agenda" tends to back this assessment up, using quotes from Clinton's own aides. Harry notes that Woodward himself evaluates the quotes in his book as indicating that Clinton is indecisiveness, but not insincere. Rush says Woodward can make that assessment if he wants, but if Stephanopoulos is saying that Clinton is like a kaleidoscope because nobody knows what his opinions are from day to day, then how can that be simple indecisiveness? Harry thinks Clinton just can't make up his mind, but Rush says this is the point - if one is rooted in principle and knows what they believe, then you can make up your mind because you have goals and principles. Even Alice Rivlin accused the Clinton campaign of lying about the deficit, and Clinton's campaign bears no resemblance to what he's been doing since he got elected. Rush would rather have Clinton be honest about his liberalism, instead of the constant deception he puts forth about his policies and plans. Rush asks Harry to hang on through the break. *BREAK* Phone Harry from Chicago, IL (continued) Harry says that he thinks that while Clinton is left of center, he's not an outright liberal. For example, Clinton spoke moving about Nixon at his funeral, and "Albert Gore is not exactly a liberal Senator except for his environmentalist attitude." Harry thinks Clinton's attitudes about NAFTA and crime prove he is not a liberal. Rush disagrees completely, adding that the point is that the people can't know any of this simply by listening to Clinton. *BREAK* SECOND HOUR Items o Rush loves how his show has had three callers so far, all defending Clinton to one point or another. One caller, though, insisted Clinton was a conservative, while another defended his liberal objectives, proving the point that nobody knows what Clinton really is. Rush suspects that some of the people upset with him and his show should be impressed at how right he is so often, especially when he relies on his instincts. Rush has said countless times that Clinton is trying to fool the people anew each day and that America doesn't know what he truly believes, instead assuming the opinions that his pollster tells him to. Clinton knows that most people wouldn't want the liberalism he really is going after, so he camouflages and tries to hide what he is really doing. Bob Woodward's "The Agenda" quotes high-ranking officials about all this, and so far the administration hasn't refuted what's in this book. One page 185 of Woodward's book, for example, reports that: "[George] Stephanopoulos knew that it was a mistake to assume that any one moment with Clinton, any one conservation, day, or even week reflected Clinton's true feelings or unchanging, fundamental attitude about something. With any single audience or person, Clinton was generally consistent and had mastered his rap, but he could articulate a totally different, even contradictory, rap to the next audience with genuine sincerity." The book goes on to note that Clinton's "intellectual ruminative side" of his personality was that he could reflect different things at different times, which was why Stephanopoulos always presented a range of arguments to his boss. Stephanopoulos referred to this as Clinton's being a kaleidoscope, and Clinton's defenders would claim that this is a good thing, as it means Clinton is being open-minded and reflective about all the issues. Rush, though, would suggest exactly the opposite, and James Carville even got so exasperated at one point about not knowing what Clinton believed that he drew a square of paper, asking to know "where's the hallowed ground," i.e. where are Clinton's principles and basic beliefs. This is not just Rush saying this. Woodward doesn't even offer much editorial comment in his book, but instead just offers the quotes and events. Rush admits he is not some great seer, but rather has gotten good at sizing up people. His instincts about people are seldom incorrect, yet he would dare say that Clinton and his administration are far worse or far more complicated than what he has dared express. o Today's NY Times reports that Japan's government is reluctant to impose sanctions on North Korea, saying that they oppose Clinton's plan because trade embargoes won't stop a country intent on nuclear proliferation. Rush agrees, noting that America has a serious problem in North Korea, and economic sanctions aren't enough. If the U.S. doesn't already have a plan worked out to take out North Korea's reactors, then the country has a big trouble. However, if the Japanese, who are right in North Korea's back yard don't even want to support sanctions, then that should be very telling about how worthless Clinton's plan is. o Senator Ted Kennedy's Labor and Human Resources Committee voted on the main part of his health care plan, which contains the employer mandate. This is not a surprise, but the more important committee to watch is Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan's Senate Finance Committee; what comes out of this committee will be more indicative of what the final health care plan will look like. o The Washington Post is reporting that real estate ads have reached the height of political correctness, with all sorts of formerly-used terms having been banned. Words such as "executive" are considered racist, since most executives are white, talking about "sports enthusiasts" will offend the disabled, and "quiet neighborhood" could be seen as a code for "no children." Some firms are even avoiding "master bedroom" since it suggests slavery. "Walk-in closets" and "spectacular view" are forbidden because some home-buyers cannot walk and/or see. "We're going absolutely wacko nuts," Rush sighs. *BREAK* Phone Kate from Stubenville, OH Kate thanks Rush for sending her a dittohead T-shirt a couple of weeks ago, but says she couldn't wear it yesterday because she was too upset that Rush was defending the reading of Playboy in a firehouse. Rush says he was rejoicing about this, not because someone was reading Playboy, but because the sexual harassment lawsuit against the guy had been thrown out. Women are not helpless, and it's time to stop making them all victims. A guy reading Playboy in his private quarters is not a problem to any woman. Kate says that "private quarters" in a firehouse is a bit convoluted, but the question is whether it's right or wrong to read Playboy in a public firehouse. Playboy exploits persons and is demeaning to them, so it should not be permitted, regardless of whether women are there. Rush says it sounds like Kate doesn't think anyone should read Playboy, and she says she is against the magazine because nobody should be exploited. Rush says the women in that magazine pose voluntarily and they are paid well for doing it. Kate, though, doesn't think this makes it okay, just as prostitutes aren't okay. It should be part of public morality not to demean women in this way, even if women want to make a lot of money by selling their dignity. Rush says that this is an entirely different issue, separate from what he was talking about. Rush doesn't care what the firefighter was reading; as long as that reading material is not illegal, then someone else should not be able to complain about it and force a guy in his private quarters to stop reading it. Kate says the magazine is still harming others because it is by its nature demeaning, and while she wouldn't make Playboy illegal, she doesn't think it should be permitted in a public place that's supported by taxes. Rush wonders if that means girly pin-ups should have been forbidden on all the WWII planes, or whether all U.S. military forces should be forbidden to read Playboy. Kate says "yes!" and Rush thinks she is being a bit too stringent. He thanks her for calling, and notes that it's one thing to discuss the merits of Playboy and another to allow someone to complain that someone else's reading material offends them and thus should be banned. There's a lack of sense of proportion in this; true sexual harassment is a crime, but a guy reading a magazine by himself in his private quarters is not sexual harassment. Phone Tom from North Kenton, OH Tom thinks Clinton should be nicknamed "Beelze-Bubba," and suggests that Rush should stop repeating himself for the liberals who aren't listening to his show. Rush says he wants these people to call, which is why he puts callers who disagree with him at the head of the call-in line. He notes that while many of these people claim they don't listen, they really do, which is why they're upset enough to call. However, these calls are not pointless because they present another chance to save a liberal soul. *BREAK* Rush notes that he hasn't talked about Patti Davis and her appearance in Playboy because he has just about had it with her obvious desire to embarrass her parents, Ronald and Nancy Reagan. It's also obvious she has many disagreements with them, both political and personal, so Rush doesn't really care what she does. It's about time Davis became her own woman, instead of using her parents' name to make a life for herself. This latest attempt to embarrass her parents isn't working, and Rush suspects Davis is just embarrassing herself. It would be nice, though, if she moved on and assumed some responsibility for her own life, instead of constantly blaming her parents for everything wrong in her life. Phone Sue from Edmore, MI Sue congratulates Rush on his wedding, and is furious with the first hour callers who are upset with Rush; these people are living in a dream world, thinking that Clinton will bring them a utopian society. They don't seem to realize that all of these things they want Clinton to give them can be had if they would just go out and work. Sue and her husband are potato farmers who work very hard, and they are tired of the environmentalists making life ever more difficult for them. These people don't seem to know what it's like to live in the real world, and Sue has about had it with them. Rush says many Clinton supporters defend him out of a sense of duty, but even his staunchest defenders are starting to back away. He can understand, though, how Clinton supporters get tired of hearing the truth about their guy every day. Rush felt sort of the same way about the left's comments on Quayle, although with Quayle, the left was making mostly mean- spirited jokes and ignoring issues of substance. Rush can also understand how those who voted for Clinton must feel now, especially when they have to defend their actions. Phone Suzanne from Merced, CA Suzanne is getting tired of the women callers who think Playboy is such a horrible thing, especially as they are missing the point about how this magazine was being read in private quarters. She notes her husband used to pull alert duty while in the Air Force, and like firefighters, this meant 24 hour duty. These guys are given private places they can go, and they aren't all together every second of the day. Suzanne doesn't have Playboy in her home, but if her husband wanted to read it (strictly for the articles, of course), she wouldn't mind. Rush says that the other callers probably thought his excited reaction towards this story was an endorsement of Playboy, but it wasn't; he was rejoicing at how a stupid sexual harassment lawsuit was defeated, with the judge reaffirming the constitutional principles of free expression and privacy. Suzanne says Rush's point was clear to her; this issue is about individual rights and firefighters should be able to read what they want in private. It'd be one thing if they were putting the centerfolds up on the firehouse walls, but that wasn't the case here. Rush agrees - he'd have no disagreement if the problem was over posters going up, but the guy was just reading it by himself in his private quarters. Rush remembers that two or three years ago, a waitress refused to serve a guy at a diner in Oakland because he was reading Playboy. A big brouhaha resulted, and the business fired the waitress. Suzanne thinks that reading the magazine itself is fine, while exposing the centerfolds to the waitress or other diners would be wrong. Rush agrees with that, but doesn't remember what happened with that Oakland case. Rush thanks Suzanne for calling, and notes that in New York the latest crime wave is muggers attacking people at ATM machines. In California, though, the problem is beggars harassing those getting money at ATMs, so voters in San Francisco Tuesday passed 57 to 43% a law that would require the homeless and other non-ATM customers to remain 30 feet from the ATMs. The law would fine violators $500 if they loitered around for more than a minute; there are exceptions for those conducting lawful business such as waiting for a bus or standing in line for theater tickets. The ACLU is predictably upset, claiming that this law makes it a crime to "chat with a friend, hail a taxi, and enjoy a sunny day." Rush "thanks the Lord for giving us idiocy" and for giving the country yet another cockamaney defense of criminals. Backers of the initiative, though, claim it will deter robbers and keep beggars from intimidating those trying to use the ATM machines. Rush doesn't know if this law will do anything to keep criminals in line, but it might encourage the crooks to bring along a tape measure to make sure they keep 30 feet away. Rush finds it very interesting that nearly 60% of San Francisco voters wanted a law that at least would give them a running start in getting away from the crooks. *BREAK* Rush offers an olive branch to his first-hour callers by playing one of EIB's latest PSAs: <> My fellow Americans, this is Bill Clinton, and I need your help. By now you're probably tired of all the allegations against me, and I'm tired of denying them. The opponents of change don't want me to give you the business, uh, don't want me to do the people's business. There are so many women, uh, so much work and so little precious time. That's why I need your help! Your donation to my legal defense fund will allow me to continue to fight the powerful forces that threaten to discredit all that we've accomplished so far. The ten, twenty, . . . thirty thousand dollars you send will stop the endless deficit spending Hillary and I will be forced to endure. Please send whatever you can . . . not for us, but for the children. Thank you. <> Dig deep, and send even more than you can afford to . . . Save Our Bill, Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC. That's S.O.B., Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC. ******** Phone Larry from Chicago, IL Larry has been reading "The Agenda," and on page 247 Woodward writes that during one of the administration's "skull meetings," Howard Pastor was angry that outside political consultants were giving Clinton policy option papers and confidential memos without letting his staff see them first. Pastor noted that if lobbyists had this kind of relationship with Clinton, it would be a major scandal, yet these consultants weren't that different from the "real lobbyists." The most damning part of this section of the book, though, is the line "the consultants were trying to remake policy because the poll numbers were down." Rush says this does sum up the Clinton administration, but Rush has previously reported how Clinton's pollster Stan Greenberg, along with Clinton's main consultants - James Carville, Mandy Gruenwald, and Paul Begala - does focus group research so that Clinton knows what kind of things he should be saying. Larry adds that Woodward points out that his book is based on "deep background," which means he did first-hand interviews of people who were actually there at these meetings. Rush says that this point was made on the most recent 60 Minutes, in which Mike Wallace reported that he had listened to some of Woodward's own tapes, to verify what was in the book. Larry adds that he's only on page 247 so far, but from what he's read so far, Woodward's book is bound to come back to haunt Clinton. *BREAK* The EEOC has issued a ruling that could make it "religious harassment" for someone to keep a Bible on their desk at work or wear a cross as jewelry. This has generated a lot of anger among Americans, as might be expected, and Senator Hank Brown (R-CO) has issued a bill to block the EEOC from enforcing this ruling. Rush plans to give him moral support by putting a Bible out on his desk for his TV show; if someone in the audience doesn't like it, they can leave, but Rush won't remove it. Phone Peter from Raleigh, NC Peter says he respects Bob Dole for his war record, but he has problems with what Dole is doing in the Senate. Rush says that Dole has now said that he won't be supporting the independent Republican candidate in the Virginia Senate race, and will probably be meeting with North at some point. Thus, it's likely that Dole will end up supporting North. Peter didn't hear that, but says it's good news. Dole, though, was a big supporter of the 1990 Budget Deal and has been all over the map with health care. Peter doesn't think Dole is providing a lot of good leadership. Rush notes that Senator Dole is a fine man, but he's got one heck of a job right now, given that as Senate Minority Leader he's got to hold the Republican party together. The GOP is fractured and split many ways, and Dole has to keep these guys unified. Dole is also toying with the idea of running for President, so he's concerned about that, too. Rush hopes that when it comes right down to it, Dole will do the right thing on health care. He's supporting the Chafee plan right now, but that could be something he's doing to get some political maneuvering room. Rush has hopes, though, that when it comes time for a vote that Dole will not betray his party. *BREAK* THIRD HOUR Items o The attacks against the Christian Right have begun in earnest, with Frank Rich of the NY Times, Susan Estrich of USA Today, and Al Hunt of the Wall Street Journal all warning about the dangers of Christian fundamentalists. Rush again states that the Christian fundamentals are the reaction in today's politics, not the action - they are not out to conquer, but to preserve the America that is under attack. These people see the things that make the country great being torn apart, and they are trying to defend them. Religious people have as much right to do this as anyone else, and it's absurd to think that just because someone is religious that they should be barred from politics. o Today's USA Today has the headline "California crawls out of recession," and the paper reports near the end of the story that California manufacturers are "enjoying rising exports from Mexico." Rush wonders how this could be, given that NAFTA's opponents insisted it would hurt America's manufacturers. A story earlier this week also reported that trade with Mexico as a whole is way, way up. o The basement in a four-story apartment building in Chicago owned by Rep. Dan Rostenkowski was used to store many of the $40,000 worth of items he is alleged to have bought from the House Stationery store with government funds. According to the indictment, these items, which Rostenkowski insisted were for official government use, included 60 wooden armchairs, hand- painted with his name, 60 crystal sculptures of the U.S. Capitol, 250 pieces of China, and 22 pieces of luggage. This stash does not include the $82,000 which Rostenkowski paid back to the Treasury earlier this year to cover what he said were "inappropriate purchases." o New York's new state budget came in at $63 billion, and while there are no new taxes in it, there aren't many, if any, tax cuts either. Yet another story notes that Governor William Weld of Massachusetts is leading his state to financial health via lower cuts. Since Weld has taken office, the estate tax has been fazed out as has the tax on financial services, and the income tax has been cut from 6.9 to 5.65%. The economy has reacted by improving and getting stronger, proving yet again that lowering taxes stimulates growth. o The FBI is looking into reports that Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy received free travel and tickets to sporting events, among other things, from Tyson Foods, based in Arkansas and the largest employer in that state. A spokesman for Espy, who has control over such agriculturally-based companies, reported Espy said he was cooperating with investigators, while the FBI claimed it didn't know anything about it. A Wall Street Journal article in March suggested that Espy had given Tyson Foods favorable treatment after receiving such benefits. Phone John from Cody, WY John has a problem with many aspects of the Clinton administration, but thinks that the setups in the Italian cemetery and in Normandy will be overlooked. Rush says that his TV show will continue showing these events, not to mention photos of Rush's new bride. John says that the people who keep justifying President Clinton's actions are the same ones who were once trying to claim that while being patriotic is nice, it doesn't help when running the country. Rush adds that Clinton's defenders actually go on about how nice a guy he is and that he really cares about the people. John thinks all of this shows that character matters, but some people seem to think that America should be run as some sort of corporation. But America is more than this, and John has to wonder if Clinton takes his hat off when the National Anthem plays if nobody's looking. Rush doesn't know about this, but doesn't think it would be any kind of test either, given that there isn't a lazier bunch of people than sports reporters, and if nobody's looking at the press box, they won't stand up for the National Anthem either. John notes President Bush was constantly accused of being out of touch, which was true since he didn't experiment with drugs or go onto TV. Rush can't argue with that, and, noting John's rich, booming voice, asks him what he does for a living. John replies "I am a broadcaster," explaining he spins CDs and "forgotten gold." He notes he, like Rush once did, plays "Under My Thumb" far too much, and Rush acknowledges that he was fired once for ostensibly playing this golden oldy too many times. John encourages Rush by saying that he's not a Democratic plant and that "we are winning!" Rush is glad to have John on his side and thanks him for calling. *BREAK* Phone Kirsten from Redding, CT Kirsten has an interesting voice, so Rush asks if she, too, is in broadcasting; she replies no, she's Canadian. She adds that when she told her three-year-old daughter that she was on the phone waiting for Rush, her daughter insisted that she tell Rush "he's not supposed to say `damn,' he's supposed to say `darn'!" She had heard Rush on an earlier show say "damn" and since she's not allowed to say it herself, she wanted Kirsten to remind Rush about this, too. Rush thanks both Kirsten and her daughter to that advice, and Kirsten says she was very upset about the staged scene of Clinton at the beach when she saw it last night. She had thought it was strange in the first place that there just happened to be a pile of stones right there on the beach, not to mention the conveniently placed ship in the background. She notes her father spent six years in WWII and parachuted into France on D-Day; he then spent the next year going through the horrors of the end of that war. She adds that she, like Rush, took a trip through Normandy about five years ago, and was moved beyond words at what she saw. She thus thinks its reprehensible that Clinton is using this event, which was characterized by men dying by the hundreds, for his own political purposes; and for him to use a religious symbol such as the cross for this purpose is even more outrageous. Clinton has done many things that have upset Kirsten, but this definitely is the worse. Rush says that the staged aspects of his speech were outright phony, and he hopes that people have seen this on his TV show. On tonight's show, he's going to show how Clinton allegedly put the flags upright in the Anzio graveyard, yet those flags had "fallen down" because Clinton's aides had deliberately knocked them down for this photo-op. He thanks Kirsten for her call. Phone Tim from Norwood, NJ Tim is tired of how the Republicans are allowing the Democrats to claim that their crime bill will fix crime, when it's the Democrats who have created the current crime with their lenient policies. The liberals have made excuses upon excuses for these criminals, allowing them to commit even more crimes, and Republicans should be pointing this stuff out. Rush says many Republicans are doing this, but they can't stop the Clinton Crime Bill. Tim says he keeps well-informed, but he hasn't seen any Republican doing this. Rush says that Newt Gingrich has attacked the crime bill, and Tim admits he saw this; however, nobody has pointed out that the reason crime is so bad today is because of Democratic policies. Rush says that part of this problem is that the Supreme Court has made many legal rulings that have made it tougher to imprison crooks and keep them behind bars. Crime, though, is one of the central issues of the country, and the people are tired of how criminals are being turned into victims. On Monday, Rush interviewed Ruben Greenberg, the police chief for Charleston, SC for the next issue of the Limbaugh Letter, and the interview was a fascinating one. Greenberg has taken several novel approaches to crime, and these have reduced crime in his town by 37%. For example, he got rid of drug sales in a neighborhood by positioning a cop on the street corner opposite the crack house; this shut down the business and moved the dealers out of the neighborhood. Rush asked if the drug dealers wouldn't kill the cop, but Greenberg, who has fired his weapon only twice in 300 arrests, noted that if the dealers killed the cop, another ten cops would be there in minutes. What this man has done is amazing, and Rush is glad to have been able to report about it. *BREAK* Rush publicly berates Tony Lo Bianco for not "giving" him the mike when he asked for it, meaning that Rush had to wait 14 seconds, instead of 10 to go on the air. He also lambastes Lo Bianco for cutting the music too short, so Lo Bianco plays a couple more seconds of music for good measure, although it interrupts Rush in mid-sentence. Rush notes that this byplay is all in fun, given that EIB has more fun that most workplaces (and that's without having any copies of Playboy to read, too). Phone Bobbie from Half Moon Bay, CA Bobbie congratulates Rush on his marriage, adding that she really respects him now because he married a female journalist, which is what she is, too. She notes that she plans to support Bill Clinton forever because she feels it's her duty to keep Rush on the air; she's worried that should someone get in the White House that Rush likes, he'll no longer have anything to talk about. Rush appreciates the kind thoughts, but stresses that Bobbie doesn't have to worry. He comments that EIB got a call from a producer of a highly-rated TV show earlier this week, who wanted Rush to be on his show as an example of the conservative movement that's "sweeping the country" because of Clinton. Rush pointed out that his show's success has had nothing to do with Clinton's being in the White House, but the producer refused to believe this, pointing out that Rush's TV show didn't take off until after Clinton won the White House. Rush told the producer that 1) he's not part of any conservative "movement" and 2) that there have always been conservatives in America, as evidenced by Ronald Reagan and the 80s. Rush also reminded the producer that his program started with 56 stations and an audience of 250,000 on August 1, 1988, which was smack-dab in the middle of the 1988 Presidential campaign. During the next four years of the Bush administration, Rush's program grew to more than 500 stations and more than 17 million listeners. Rush's program and his success aren't determined by who wins elections, which is fortunate for him. It still has to be remembered, though, that Republican administrations don't do everything right, and even if they did, there would still be a lot of liberals out there. And those liberals, precisely because they would be out of power, would be more shrill, louder, crazier, and funnier than ever. Thus, should a Republican win in 1996, Rush is certain his program will continue to grow. The TV producer Rush was talking to was dumbfounded by this, and it made Rush wonder why these journalists aren't good enough to remember he's been on the air nearly six years. In fact, when his show first started, the conventional wisdom was that once the elections were over Rush's show would go away because he wouldn't have anything more to talk about. This criticism has been made against him every year like clockwork - that when Clinton gets elected, Rush will be finished; that when the homeless or deficit problems are fixed, he'd have nothing more to talk about. However, these critics don't realize that since Rush's program is rooted in common sense, which is always in short supply, and since he covers the current events, he's not ever going to find nothing to talk about. Bobbie is glad to hear this because should she decide in 1996 to vote Republican for the first time, she knows she won't be hurting Rush's career. She adds that she tried to be a full-time journalist, but bagged the idea two years ago because she couldn't take the hypocrisy and the phoniness of modern-day journalism. She is glad that Rush is out there exposing the superficiality of the modern press, and bets that Marta feels the same way. Rush says that he and his wife have had some interesting arguments about this, but over the years, thanks to her association with Rush, she has reluctantly agreed that Rush *might* know what he's talking about. Wives, of course, can never say that their husbands are always right, but she has come around to a certain degree. Marta, though, wants to be a feature/personality freelancing journalist, as her real focus of interest is that the country doesn't take the youth of America seriously enough. She has far more faith in the younger generation than most people do today and would like to publish some magazines devoted to youth of various ages. She therefore hopes to get more involved in that area, although Rush admits "her interests are spanning the universe." Rush asks Bobbie what she's been doing lately, and she says that she publishes a magazine that's written by children, with their views on the world. "Son of a gun!" Rush exclaims, wondering whether female journalists interested in children's views are really that common in America. Bobbie admits she and Marta are pretty rare, but children do have a lot of opinions which are not published very much today. She and her husband thus started putting out "What Children Have to Say" a couple of years ago, so she encourages Marta to go for her dreams. Rush says that his wife is passionate about most things, but when she gets on this topic of the youth, she doesn't even stop to breathe. Bobbie is sympathetic and encourages Rush to call her husband if he ever needs to commiserate with another husband in similar circumstances. Rush thanks her for that and for her call. His chief of staff, H.R. "Kit" Carson, then tells Rush that Marta just called to say that Rush is the greatest guy in the world and that she agrees with everything he says. Rush has his doubts about this, especially since he wonders why his wife called his chief of staff and not him. He quickly apologizes to his wife for casting any aspersions on her call. H.R. then comes into the studio to broadcast to the nation that Marta did indeed say that Rush is the greatest guy in the world, that everything he says is right, and that she agrees with everything he says. Rush, basking in the glow of such accolades, points out how easy marriage truly is, but H.R., married for a little more than a year, screams in disbelief as he leaves the studio. Rush ignores his cynical chief of staff and blows a big kiss to his honey. H.R. warns Rush that he's still in the honeymoon stage, but Rush insists "our honeymoon will never end!" Rush adds that the trick to making sure the honeymoon never ends is to avoid the trap of thinking "I'm married, I've got her now!" Instead, you have to work two or three times harder to keep your wife, given that the constant day-to-day exposure makes it easy to grow complacent. Bo Snerdley wonders how this miracle can be done, and Rush admits he doesn't know yet since he's just started off on this road. However, he'll let everyone know once he succeeds. *BREAK* Phone Dick from Aberdeen, WA Dick, as a veteran, thought that the June issue of the Limbaugh Letter, with its tributes to Rush's father and those who served in D-Day, was very moving. He got depressed after Clinton's election, but was encouraged when he finally found out about Rush last year. Dick doesn't think Rush's criticisms of the President are at all nasty or without merit, especially since he himself doesn't believe anything that the President has said. Dick would like to be able to believe in his President, whoever that President is; however, he simply can't do this now. Dick's voice has been cracking throughout the call, and he explains that he is a very patriotic person by nature, so talking about these things is difficult for him to do without getting emotional. Rush can understand that, and thanks him for his call. Phone Ted from Manhattan, NY Ted notes that many of the liberal commentators on TV and radio went out of their way to put their unique spin on Ronald Reagan's service in the military during WWII. Michael Kinsley and Margaret Carlson both pointedly stated that "Ronald Reagan spent WWII in Hollywood." However, Ronald Reagan made training films in WWII. He enlisted in 1936 but couldn't serve because of his poor eyesight, so he put his talents where they could do the most good. Rush agrees this is true, and notes that the important thing to note about the liberals' attempts to disparage Reagan is that they're still missing the point about why Americans are upset with Clinton. The people are not upset with Clinton because he didn't serve or go into combat; rather, the people have a problem with Clinton because he did and still does hold the military in contempt. He wrote 25 years ago that he loathed the military, but there is not one iota of evidence that Reagan at any point made any statements even remotely resembling that. The liberals know that they can't defend Clinton on this, so they do what liberals do best, which is attack Ronald Reagan. The liberals are frustrated beyond belief, so they are doing whatever they can to retain some shred of credibility for their guy, and the only thing they have left is to attack others. This is offensive and frustrating, but Rush doubts many people are falling for it anymore. *BREAK* Phone Mary from Bloomington, MN Mary can't believe that Rush apologized to his wife on the air earlier, and wonders if now that he's married he's going to turn into a wimp. Mary says that she's been in America for only seven years, and "American guys are nothing but a wimp, and it looks to me that you're going to turn into one!" Rush laughs because before he got married, Marta predicted that Rush would quickly get calls from people insisting that his wife had changed him forever. "She did!" Mary exclaims. Rush refuses to hear of this, and insists he's not going to become a wimp. Mary says Rush is no different than most American guys, who when a woman says "jump," ask "how high?" She simply can't believe that Rush is so quickly and easily turning into a wimp himself, given how quickly he apologized to his wife after making a joke about her. Rush says this is a "nice try," but he's not buying it. He can't win anyhow - if he agrees with Mary, then he'll be a double wimp, because he'll have admitted to being one with Marta and because he'll have agreed with Mary. He insists, though, that he's not a wimp, and wonders if Mary is worried that the only thing he'll ever do behind his wife's back is zip her up. Mary says this is not it; she just thinks that Rush should not apologize for what he says, but rather stands behind his words. "Please, don't apologize, Rush - not just to Marta, but to anybody!" Apologizing is okay when he's done something wrong, but not about a joke. Rush still can't accept the idea that he's a wimp, especially since if anyone is worried about men being wimps and being henpecked, they should call Bill Clinton. He thanks Mary for calling with her concerns, though.