Rush Hudson Limbaugh III (born 12 January 1951) is an American radio host and conservative political commentator. Limbaugh rose to prominence during the 1990s as host of a nationally-syndicated talk-radio show, The Rush Limbaugh Show. Limbaugh was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. His family has a long history in Republican politics, including several members who were judges. When Limbaugh was 16 years old he began working at a local radio station. After attending Southeast Missouri State University for a year he dropped out of college. In the early 1970s, Limbaugh moved to Pennsylvania to work as a radio disc jockey, using the alias Jeff Christie at KQV in Pittsburgh. In 1984, Limbaugh began working as a talk show host in Sacramento, California. His distinctively styled program featured no guests, relying exclusively on his emblem of conservative political analysis. In 1988, Limbaugh moved to New York City and began national broadcast of The Rush Limbaugh Show on WABC radio. His three-hour program made Limbaugh well-known. In the 1990s Limbaugh’s fame grew beyond radio and into other media, such as publishing and television. He became a bestselling author with his books The Way Things Ought to Be (1992) and See, I Told You So (1993). From 1992 to 1996 Limbaugh hosted a half-hour television talk show. Limbaugh frequently accuses the American mainstream media of having a strong liberal bias.

Sourced

Chronological order

• Greetings, conversationalists across the fruited plain, this is Rush Limbaugh, the most dangerous man in America, with the largest hypothalamus in North America, serving humanity simply by opening my mouth, destined for my own wing in the Museum of Broadcasting, executing everything I do flawlessly with zero mistakes, doing this show with half my brain tied behind my back just to make it fair because I have talent on loan from . . . God. Rush Limbaugh. A man. A legend. A way of life.
  • During the opening comments of his show as quoted in "A Man. A Legend. A What!?" by RICHARD CORLISS and Daniel S. Levy inTime (September 23, 1991)

• Take that bone out of your nose and call me back.
  • Response to a black caller he was having a hard time understanding in the 1970s when he worked under the name "Jeff Christie" on a top-40 music program in Pittsburgh, as quoted in Newsday (8 October 1990) where he expresses some remorse at having said it; also in The Way Things Aren't : Rush Limbaugh's Reign of Error (1995) by Steve Rendall, Jim Naureckas, and Jeff Cohen [ISBN 156584260X] , and "Bone Voyage" at Snopes.com (September 4, 2007)

• Too many whites are getting away with drug use...Too many whites are getting away with drug sales...The answer is to go out and find the ones who are getting away with it, convict them and send them up the river, too.
  • Stated on The Rush Limbaugh Show (October 5, 1995); also quoted in The Palm Beach Post (December 7, 2003)

• It's beyond me how anybody can look at these protestors and call them anything other than what they are: anti-American, anticapitalist, pro-Marxist communists.
  • Speaking about political dissent (February 2003), quoted in —

• The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well.
  • As quoted in "Dittohead Blues" in the LA Weekly (October 9, 2003)

• You know I have always tried to be honest with you and open about my life, so I need to tell you that part of what you have heard and read is correct. I am addicted to prescription pain medication.
  • Stated on The Rush Limbaugh Show (Oct 10, 2003); also quoted in The Palm Beach Post (February 15, 2004)

• It's sort of like hazing, a fraternity prank. Sort of like that kind of fun.
  • Stated about abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib by United States soldiers (May 3-4, 2004), quoted in —

• I'm talking about people having a good time, these people, you ever heard of emotional release? You ever heard of need to blow some steam off?
  • Stated about Abu Ghraib (May 4, 2004), quoted in —

• We need to shut down this Gitmo prison? Well, don't shut it down - we just need to start an advertising campaign. We need to call it, 'Gitmo, the Muslim resort.' Any resort that treated people like this would have ads all over the New York Times trying to get people to come down and visit for some R&R, for some rest and relaxation.
  • Stated about Guantanamo Bay, on The Rush Limbaugh Show, (June 14, 2005), quoted in —

• If the word of how they're being treated keeps getting out, we're going to have al-Qaeda people surrendering all over the world trying to get in place.
  • Stated about Guantanamo Bay (June 16, 2005), quoted in —

• Look, let me put it to you this way: the NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons. There, I said it.
  • As quoted in "Hey Rush, when it comes to sports ... shhh!" by Mike Freeman at CBS SportsLine (January 27, 2007)

Attributed

• Great comedy is great comedy only if it has an element of truth in it.

• More people have died at Chappaquiddick than have died at nuclear plants.

Quotes about Limbaugh

Alphabetized by author

• Burke and Salisbury are conservatives. Rush Limbaugh is an anti-intellectual. The tragedy of the Conservative Movement is that far too many Americans no longer know the difference.
  • Jacob M. Appel, American playwright, in Aborophilia (2006)

• Regardless of political labels, for any radio announcer to wish a riot on a city so his party could win, that's disgraceful and it's absurd.
  • Republican Denver Councilman Charles Brown, on Limbaugh's comments that "Riots in Denver at the Democrat Convention would see to it we don't elect Democrats …and that's the best damn thing could happen for this country as far as anything I can think", as quoted in "Limbaugh "dreams" of - doesn't advocate - Denver riot" by Joey Bunch in The Denver Post (April 24, 2008)

• We have no intention of prosecuting Rush Limbaugh because lying through your teeth and being stupid isn't a crime.
  • Leo Jennings, a spokesperson for the office of the Ohio Attorney General, after Limbaugh urged Ohio Republicans to reregister as Democrats to disrupt the Democratic primary, which would be a felony if done with fraudulent intent; reported in "Limbaugh safe from voter-fraud charges" in The Columbus Dispatch (March 28, 2008)

• Given Mr. Limbaugh’s history of support for our soldiers, it would be unfair for me to assume his statements were intended to personally indict combat soldiers simply because they didn’t share his own views on the war in Iraq.
  • Mark P. Mays, President of Clear Channel Communications, in "Limbaugh Broadcaster Comes to Radio Host's Defense" FoxNews.com (October 3, 2007)

• Yes, I have heard them for myself. I have read the transcripts. I have heard the audio. I was asked if I would be interested in doing an ad. I told them I would be as long as I agreed with the language of the ad. I read the language of the ad and agreed with it. It's something that I stand by and stick by. I do believe it and I can think for myself. And for Rush Limbaugh to say that an American soldier like me can't think for myself because I speak out against the Iraq war is preposterous.... A lot of veterans and troops don't believe in the war. What he is really saying is that a growing, large number of veterans can't think for themselves.
  • Sgt. Brian McGough's response to Limbaugh's implication that he was lied to about Limbaugh's "phony soldiers" comment before doing an ad for VoteVets.org, on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, MSNBC (October 3, 2007)

• My initial reaction is disgust. How someone can sit in that chair and say that I am a car bomber or — excuse me, a suicide bomber — is disgusting. I have seen the after-effects of a suicide bomb. I have friends that were hurt by suicide bombs. It makes me mad down to a place where I can"t even think to describe. It's just repugnant.
  • Purple heart recipient Sgt. Brian McGough's response to a Limbaugh metaphor saying that someone was "strapping those lies to his belt", on Countdown with Keith Olbermann, MSNBC (October 3, 2007)

• Who’s off his meds and is exaggerating the effects of his illness? Comedian Rush Limbaugh, that’s who!
  • Keith Olbermann while naming Limbaugh "Worst Person in the World" on Countdown with Keith Olbermann referencing how Limbaugh said that of Michael J. Fox. (October 26, 2006)

• You know, if you played a drinking game where you did a shot every time Rush Limbaugh attacked someone for being elite, you'd almost be as wasted as Rush Limbaugh.
  • Bill Maher, talking about right-wing attacks on elites on Real Time with Bill Maher (April 13, 2007)

• Everyone knows that Rush Limbaugh and I don't agree on everything in life, and maybe that is kind of an understatement ... I strongly believe when we can put our differences aside, even Harry Reid and Rush Limbaugh, we should do that and try to accomplish good things for the American people.
  • Harry Reid, as quoted in "Anti-Limbaugh letter nets $2.1 million" by Brian Skoloff, in The San Diego Tribune (October 20, 2007)

• Airing anti-Rush Limbaugh commercials during the Rush Limbaugh show would only conflict with the listeners who have chosen to listen to Rush Limbaugh.
  • A WJNO spokesman, explaining why the Palm Beach station will not honor Limbaugh's promise to air a VoteVets.org ad during his radio show in his town of residence, as quoted on Countdown with Keith Olbermann (October 4, 2007)