RUSH: Michael in New York City, thank you for waiting, Open Line Friday, and you are next, sir.
CALLER: Thank you. Thank you, Rush, very much. I want to thank you for taking my call and tell you how much of an honor this is to speak with you today.
RUSH: Thank you, sir.
CALLER: You know, I called because I was looking for motivation. I’m a Republican, a conservative Republican. With all that’s been going on, candidate after candidate has just been slapping around. Within my own community we are having a lot of issues with trying to decide who we want to represent us on the Republican side. None of us are really very comfortable with Mitt Romney but we’ve kind of gone through the gamut. We’ve gone through the Perry and the Cain and Bachmann and so on and so forth. And, you know, right now Newt Gingrich is my candidate. I think that as far as on the debate side, I think he would just whip the crap out of — excuse that word —
RUSH: Let me ask you a question.
CALLER: — out of President Obama. But my gut feeling is that many people don’t feel like me, and listening to you today, it’s kind of bringing me back to this feeling of where I thought that we were just gonna give ’em this election again. I’m kind of getting this feeling of, you know? We gotta keep fighting. We gotta keep pushing forward.
RUSH: Wait a minute. Why do you think that? What’s happened today that makes you think that?
CALLER: Well, you know, this unemployment thing with the spin.
RUSH: I know. That’s exactly what they want you to do. You gotta buck up.
CALLER: I know.
RUSH: I spent all week talking about that. One of my themes at the Rush to Excellence show New York Tuesday night was we are gonna hear this. You think it’s bad now? Wait ’til it goes to 8.2.
CALLER: Yeah.
RUSH: Wait ’til it gets to 7.9 next July.
CALLER: I know the reason. You’re right. You’re right in trying to explain this in how they come up with that fictitious number. It’s just a lie. It’s not the truth.
RUSH: But the thing is, you’re not alone. You’re not the lone wolf who thinks the country’s about to head off the guardrails. You’re in the vast majority — and an unemployment number isn’t going to change it, especially a fake one.
CALLER: Yeah.
RUSH: Until they can go out and show robust economic activity — factories open, people happily working — they may be able to try to fake it and so forth but you’re gonna be bombarded with all kinds of things. I want to ask you something. You mentioned all the other candidates.
CALLER: Yeah.
RUSH: You’ve gone through Cain, Perry, Bachmann, and you’ve settled on Newt. You sound like you have been part of the group that they describe as “anybody but Romney.”
CALLER: Yeah. You know, I didn’t like him four years ago. I was not on the McCain bandwagon back then either, but I went with the party. I fought with them, I’m a county committee member, I went out door-to-door, and ironically where I live, our community, our district actually went for McCain, which was very, very tough. I’m in a totally Democratic area.
RUSH: But let me ask you about all these other candidates. You say you’re a Newt guy now, but have you always been a Newt guy?
CALLER: No. No, I wasn’t.
RUSH: Okay. Let me guess.
CALLER: In the very beginning, before Perry got in I was kind of on the Perry side.
RUSH: Right. I know what you’re gonna say. I know what’s gonna happen here.
CALLER: — and then I started listening a little bit more to Cain —
RUSH: Yeah.
CALLER: — but I gotta be honest, I got turned off not because I don’t think he’s competent. I just think that — and maybe the way he handled it, maybe the way his crew let him handle it.
RUSH: Right. Were you ever big on Bachmann?
CALLER: Not big, not big.
RUSH: So Bachmann was never your favorite at one time?
CALLER: At one time Bachmann was kind of a favorite.
RUSH: Okay. You’re kind of cementing what I think is going on here. There is in phenomenon, “anybody but Romney.” You sound to me like whoever’s up in the polls, whoever appears to be catching fire is who you latch onto.
CALLER: Well, I —
RUSH: Not a criticism. That’s not a criticism.
CALLER: No, no. But in that aspect, I always like Gingrich. But, you know, listening to guys like Bill O’Reilly saying, “He doesn’t have a shot, he doesn’t have a shot,” I tried to give the other guys a chance. I looked at everybody else. I mean, you know, even who didn’t get in. One of my favorites is Chris Christie, though, you know, I think he woulda gotten hammered against Obama. You know, looking at what’s there, I don’t feel a hundred percent comfortable with what’s out there. I, like you said, at this point I really do think I’m behind Gingrich in the sense that I hope he wins. I hope he gets to the point where he is up against Obama, and I truly think that if he goes up against him and people pay attention to what he has to say, he could beat him. But unfortunately, if Mitt Romney should wind up with the nomination, I will vote for Mitt because I cannot have Obama. I have two young children, and —
RUSH: See, here’s what you’re telling me — and what you’re telling me not all bad. You’re gonna vote whoever wins the nomination. You are not going to sit out because really this is about Obama. I wouldn’t worry about your disappointment. You’re obviously unable to really get ignited about any of these people, but that’s okay because what does ignite you is Obama, and that’s what this election’s going to be. It’s gonna be a referendum on Obama, and any one of these people on our side would be a 100% to 200% improvement — and of that you can be confident, and they can also win. Don’t listen to these know-nothings who tell you that X doesn’t have a shot. They don’t know what they’re talking about. It’s asinine.