Old Media Helps Obama Push False Rush Limbaugh Immigration Quotes
-By Warner Todd Huston
Yesterday, the Washington Post’s Ed O’Keefe reported that the Obama campaign was releasing some new Spanish language campaign ads on TV in Florida and other markets that feature Rush Limbaugh making what appears to be anti-Mexican comments. The ads then link Limbaugh to McCain on immigration attempting to smear them both in the minds of voters. The Limbaugh quotes, however, are so out of context that their use constitutes a lie. Unfortunately, too many media outlets are allowing these lies to stand unchallenged.
As O’Keefe reported on September 17, the ads feature quotes from Rush that display a shocking anti-Mexican immigrant feel. Titled “dos caras” — or “two faces” — Rush is quoted as calling Mexicans names and telling them to “shut up and get out.”
“They want us to forget the insults we’ve put up with, the intolerance,” the television ad’s announcer says in Spanish as a picture of Rush Limbaugh appears onscreen with quotes of him saying, “Mexicans are stupid and unqualified” and “Shut your mouth or get out.”
“They made us feel marginalized in a country we love so much,” the ad continues. “John McCain and his Republican friends have two faces. One that says lies just to get our vote and another, even worse, that continues the failed policies of George Bush that put special interests ahead of working families.”
The companion radio ad uses the same script as above and then continues:
“Don’t forget that John McCain abandoned us rather than confront the leaders of the Republican Party. Many of us were born here, and others came to work and achieve a better life for their families — not to commit crimes or drain the system like many of John McCain’s friends claim. Let’s not be fooled by political tricks from John McCain and the Republicans. Vote so they respect us. Vote for a change.”
It turns out that Rush did actually say the words that the ads use against him. But, it also turns out he did not say them about Mexicans! Rush was not telling Mexicans to “get out” nor did he say that Mexican immigrants are “stupid and unqualified.”
O’Keefe, however, does not explain this in his Washington Post story. This lack of context was the same in other papers relating the story. The Chicago Tribune, for instance, didn’t fully report the truth and neither did the Wall Street Journal.
However, both Jonathan Martin of Politico and our friend Jake Tapper of ABC did report the true context of the Limbaugh quotes. And Tapper goes the extra mile with his coverage, as he always does.
On his Wednesday radio program, Limbaugh successfully proved that his words were wildly taken out of context. As to the “shut up and get out” quote, when Limbaugh said this line he was saying it in context of the immigration laws that Mexico has in its own country for foreigners wishing to live in Mexico. Mexico’s immigration laws are very strict and, as Limbaugh said, if you don’t like Mexican laws you can “shut up and get out” as far as Mexican officials are concerned. Limbaugh did not say that Mexicans here in the U.S. should “shut up and get out” if they don’t like our laws and that is the context in which Obama campaign was using this Limbaugh quote.
The second quote, “stupid and unskilled Mexicans,” was also taken out of context by the Obama campaign.
Here I’ll let Tapper explain:
Second, the quotes of Limbaugh’s are out of context.
Railing against NAFTA in 1993, Limbaugh said, “If you are unskilled and uneducated, your job is going south. Skilled workers, educated people are going to do fine ’cause those are the kinds of jobs NAFTA is going to create. If we are going to start rewarding no skills and stupid people, I’m serious, let the unskilled jobs that take absolutely no knowledge whatsoever to do — let stupid and unskilled Mexicans do that work.”
Not one of his most eloquent moments, to be sure, but his larger point was that NAFTA would mean that unskilled stupid Mexicans would be doing the jobs of unskilled stupid Americans.
I’m not going to defend how he said it, but to act as if this was just a moment of Limbaugh slurring Mexicans is not accurate. Though again, certainly if people were offended I could understand why.
On top of all these misuses of Limbaugh’s words, to link Limbaugh with McCain on immigration is also a lie. Limbaugh was strongly against John McCain’s soft immigration stance in the Senate. So, linking Limbaugh to McCain is simply absurd.
So, this Obama ad is filled with what amounts to lies. Will the rest of the Old Media follow Tapper’s and Martin’s example and expose this scurrilous Obama campaign tactic? It doesn’t look like they will because this story was out all day on the 17th and no one followed up like Tapper and Martin did. Will the rest of the media remain mum allowing this Obama lie to hang out there unaddressed?
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Posted by Warner Todd Huston on September 18, 2008 10:10 am
» Filed Under 1st Amendment, Border Control/Homeland Security, Elections, Illegal Aliens/Immigration, Liberal Media/Bias, Multiculturalism/PC, News, Obama/Biden, Revisionism, Video
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5 Responses to “Old Media Helps Obama Push False Rush Limbaugh Immigration Quotes”
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They love our country so much they willingly violate our immigration laws.
They love our country so much they endanger the lives of border patrol agents.
They love our country so much they aide other illegals to enter our country.
They love our country so much they REFUSE to learn our language.
They love our country so much they show constant disrespect for our national symbol, our flag.
They love our country so much they march behind the spixico flag.
They love our country so much they gave up the spixico flag ONLY when advised it was causing ANGER at their behavior.
They love our country so much they look for ways to ways to continually violate our Constitution and laws.
They love our country so much that countless illegals register to vote in OUR elections.
They love our country so much that they are soon becoming the greatest portion of the prison population in states such as California, Arizona and New Mexico.
They love our country so much that when they murder a family due to drunk driving they flee to spixico so they won’t face trial and incarceration.
They love our country so much they commit murder and then run to spixico so they can’t be returned unless the state agrees to take the death penalty off the table.
They love our country so much they bankrupt local hospitals and medical facilities because they REFUSE to pay for the service.
They love our country so much, they take advice from the spixican government on how to enter ILLEGALLY and how to apply for US fiscal assistance.
Yes, we surely need more of these who love our country in such a manner. Me I prefer a huge border fence with a “dead man” zone on either side, EVEN if that requires stealing land from spixico to create it. In addition, explosives should be buried at varying depths all along the fence with sound and motion detectors.
If they want to live in this country, then do so LEGALLY, following ALL laws for such entrance and the authority to stay. If they are here illegally, then throw them out, NOW.
To: Theenigma47, I couldn’t have said it better. You are spot on and I’m sure there are millions of other legal American citizens that agree with you. It is so sad to see what these illegals are doing to our great country. I don’t understand how our representatives in DC can’t see what’s happening right here before their eyes. I’m afraid they will wake up one day when it’s too late to do anything about this situation. It’s getting pretty bad when you watch a Monday night football game and the beer commercials are in Spanish. What are these people thinking of? This is the USA not Mexico.
Will the rest of the media remain mum allowing this Obama lie to hang out there unaddressed?
Don’t be silly. Of course they’ll ignore it. They are so far in the tank for Obama he could jabber like an idiot from now until Nov 4, commit multiple murders and perform an abortion live at the debate and they’d still support him.
The real obnoxious thing about it is if Obama gets elected and screws up royally (which he will most certainly do), they’ll turn around and blame the Republicans for not doing enough to expose Obama’s short comings.
Only a fool or someone who is willfully blind could listen to Limbaugh’s original comments (which appear in a Youtube clip) and believe, as is asserted above, that “Limbaugh successfully proved that his words were widely taken out of context.” In the clip, Limbaugh proposes what he calls “Limbaugh Laws” on immigration and includes in those laws, among other things, the “shut your mouth or get out” principle as one of his proposed laws. Although he subsequently discloses that these are in substance the same laws that Mexico has for immigrants, he ends up lamenting that this is a double standard and then declares at the end “no mas.” The only reasonable interpretation of Limbaugh’s “no mas” comment is that he proposes to end the double standard by applying the reciprocal “Limbaugh Laws” (including the “shut up” law) to Mexicans. Therefore, regardless of the original source of the “Limbaugh Laws,” he was clearly directing his “shut up” comments to Mexican immigrants. Also, Obama’s attribution to Limbaugh of the “Mexicans are stupid” insult is also a reasonable take on what Limbaugh said. Limbaugh’s statement on its face is ambiguous and could reasonably be interpreted in at least two different ways. A speaker cannot expect his listeners to be able to read is mind apart from his words. “Let stupid and unskilled Mexicans do that work” (Limbaugh’s actual statement) could mean either (i) “let the stupid Mexicans among the mixed population of stupid and brilliant Mexicans do that work” or (ii) “let Mexicans, who are stupid and unskilled people, do that work.” In fact, although (i) is a possiblity, (ii) seems to me to be the more natural interpretation of Limbaugh’s specific words. When a court seeks to interpret an ambiguous term in a contract (one that could reasonably be interpreted in more than one way), it always adopts the interpretation that is most beneficial to the non-drafting party because it recognizes that the drafting party, which chose the words, is the one who created the ambiguity (irrepective of what the drafting party subjectively intended). It is only fair that a similar principle be applied to Limbaugh’s words. If his words don’t clearly reflect what he meant, he has only himself to blame.
The way I see it is! People from all walks of life all over the world, each individual really needs to control there tongue people say things then later try to with draw or inprove what they meant or change it all together..Tank god for the media or we would be left in the dark about inportant matters but then again it has become so out of control a person never knows who to believe I got to research everything before I cane even draw any truth this one said that or that one said this a person more or less chases there tail trying to find truth there for EVERYONE DRAWS THERE OWN TRUTH..I for 1 don’t know what to think of this mess all I can say is maybe RUSH needs to slow down before making such strong statements on air and maybe Obama needs not to stir the flame.WHo knows thats just my oppinon for what it matters I think WE all need to remember>>Matthew 15:11 (Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man)
The way I see it were all humans and WE are all going to make mistakes! Let us not forget to mind our tongue it can be a double edge sword~! (Just a thought)