{"id":6985,"date":"2015-02-25T18:39:45","date_gmt":"2015-02-25T18:39:45","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2015-02-25T18:39:45","modified_gmt":"2015-02-25T18:39:45","slug":"what_s_motivating_republicans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rushlimbaugh.com\/daily\/2015\/02\/25\/what_s_motivating_republicans\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s Motivating Republicans?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Listen<\/a><\/p>\n

RUSH: And here is Sue from New Lebanon, Ohio, as we head back to the phones. Welcome to the EIB Network. Hello.<\/p>\n

CALLER: Hi, Mr. Limbaugh. How are you today?<\/p>\n

RUSH: I\u2019m great. Thank you very much.<\/p>\n

CALLER: One point real quickly. I am wondering why Mitch McConnell has not implemented the same option that Harry Reid did in order to get the health care bill passed. They call it nuclear option, which I understood at the time that the Republicans were so upset because they were only to use that option when it concerned a budget item, and certainly the Homeland Security budget is a budget item, so I don\u2019t get why he isn\u2019t. I wanted your thoughts on that.<\/p>\n

RUSH: Well, I think you\u2019re talking probably about budget reconciliation.<\/p>\n

CALLER: Yes.<\/p>\n

RUSH: People have been asking me, Sue, I hate to — I\u2019m not diffusing your question. People have been asking me for 27 years, “Why are the Republicans doing X?” I don\u2019t know. All I could do is guess, the same as you. Why won\u2019t the Republicans use the same techniques on the Democrats that the Democrats use on us<\/a>. That\u2019s what the question is.<\/p>\n

CALLER: Correct.<\/p>\n

RUSH: I haven\u2019t the slightest idea. I can only guess. And my guess would be somewhat informed, but still end up being a guess, and that is they\u2019re just afraid of any media criticism they\u2019re gonna get for what they do. Consultants have told them they\u2019re gonna anger the independents. I think right now what probably is — and this is just a wild guess, because, frankly, Sue, to tell you the truth, I\u2019ve gotten to the point where I don\u2019t care anymore so now I\u2019m having to fake caring about this, while giving you an answer, \u2019cause you obviously have an interest in this. <\/line><\/p>\n

My wild guess, rooted in a lack of passion on this, is that they are so worried about not screwing up 2016, the presidential race, that they are trying to avoid any action they think would be provocative, would upset the Democrats, would upset the media. They\u2019re trying to lay low just like they did during the campaign last year. The Republicans didn\u2019t campaign for anything, nationally. The Republicans didn\u2019t have a message. They didn\u2019t have an agenda. Their mission was to shut up, not say anything, and don\u2019t get any criticism and don\u2019t offend anybody. And I think they\u2019re just carrying it forward, thinking the best weapon they have is silence, and no opposition, and not be provocative, so as to not screw up their chance to win the White House in 2016.<\/p>\n

CALLER: But at the same time, then, aren\u2019t they alienating their very base?<\/p>\n

RUSH: They think, based on this last election, the base is gonna show up no matter what. I am convinced they think that. I\u2019m convinced they\u2019re not worried about losing the base.<\/p>\n

CALLER: I think they\u2019re very wrong.<\/p>\n

RUSH: And I think even further, I think there\u2019s a sizable percentage of the Republican leadership that wouldn\u2019t mind losing the base, even if it meant being in the wilderness for two or three elections.<\/p>\n

CALLER: Oh, I think perhaps it could be longer than that, forever.<\/p>\n

RUSH: A lot of people agree with you. But that\u2019s as good a guess as I can give you. I mean, how do you explain the senseless?<\/p>\n

BREAK TRANSCRIPT<\/p>\n

RUSH: Biloxi, Mississippi. This is Jordan. I\u2019m glad you waited, sir. You\u2019re next, and hello.<\/p>\n

CALLER: Thank you. Thanks for taking my call, Rush.<\/p>\n

RUSH: You bet.<\/p>\n

CALLER: Look, I think I speak for a lot of people out here when I say I am fed up with the Republican Party. I think they\u2019ve written this nation off. I think they\u2019ve written it off every bit as much as the Democratic Party has. And until I see some fight from them — and I don\u2019t think I\u2019m gonna see it — I\u2019m gonna sit the next election out. I\u2019m fed up with them. There\u2019s no reason to support them anymore. They\u2019re just like the Democrats.<\/p>\n

RUSH: I understand the frustration. You have a massive landslide victory among people who voted. Now, it may not have been a super large turnout in November, but the people that voted count, and of those people it was a massive landslide victory for the Republicans. There was one message, there was one reason those people showed up, and it was stop Obama. And there isn\u2019t any of that going on. I understand totally how you feel. I understand your frustration. I understand your desire to stay home. It\u2019s not so much you want to teach \u2019em a lesson. There\u2019s no sense. You\u2019re questioning whether or not they have a different view of government than the Democrats do.<\/line><\/p>\n

CALLER: Yes. That\u2019s exactly right. And I don\u2019t see that they do. Where\u2019s the evidence of it?<\/p>\n

RUSH: Yeah, I know. <\/p>\n

CALLER: Rush, when these people get on television, I\u2019m talking about the Republican Party, Republicans don\u2019t speak with any passion. They say things like, “I\u2019m disappointed in the Supreme Court decision regarding Obamacare.” What kind of talk is that? We want to see them pound the desk a little bit. We want to see them fight the way Democrats fight —<\/p>\n

RUSH: I know.<\/p>\n

CALLER: — and they just won\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n

RUSH: I know. I know. We can sit here and explain. I could probably tell you why they don\u2019t. I think I pretty much understand that. It isn\u2019t gonna solve anything for you. It isn\u2019t gonna mollify you, and it shouldn\u2019t. It isn\u2019t gonna make you feel any better. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

RUSH: And here is Sue from New Lebanon, Ohio, as we head back to the phones. Welcome to the EIB Network. Hello. CALLER: Hi, Mr. Limbaugh. How are you today? RUSH: I\u2019m great. Thank you very much. CALLER: One point real quickly. I am wondering why Mitch McConnell has not implemented the same option that […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhat's Motivating Republicans? - The Rush Limbaugh Show<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/admin.rushlimbaugh.com\/daily\/2015\/02\/25\/what_s_motivating_republicans\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"What's Motivating Republicans? - The Rush Limbaugh Show\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"RUSH: And here is Sue from New Lebanon, Ohio, as we head back to the phones. Welcome to the EIB Network. Hello. 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