RUSH: You know what amuses me today? All these media types. Let me take you back. Leading into the debate on the debt ceiling, remember even going into last year, the fiscal cliff first and then the debt ceiling, remember all these people saying to the Republicans, “Look, you guys just go ahead and agree to a tax increase on the rich and all that stuff and then Obama will have to negotiate. He will.” I was incredulous. I said, “Who are these people?” It was a lot of people pressuring the Republicans, other Republicans, media types. “You guys do this and then the onus is gonna be on Obama.” I thought, how naive. Obama isn’t gonna negotiate with anyone on anything.

So the Republicans cave, they confess, agree to raise taxes on the rich, and now we get to the debt ceiling debate. Obama had his press conference yesterday, and lo and behold, I have to tell you, I was surprised. F. Chuck Todd of NBC News and then Major Garrett, who left Fox, and I forget where he is now, White House correspondent for somebody because he was there in the White House, and they’re both incredulous that Obama won’t negotiate. I’m thinking, these are the State-Run Media, these are, you know, the Palace Media, the king and his court. These guys even got discombobulated. Even these guys were just incredulous that Obama wouldn’t negotiate. He was adamant he’s not gonna negotiate. He doesn’t have to. He’s not going to.

The Republicans have a gun to the nation’s head. He’s not gonna pay their ransom or whatever it is, and these two guys were incredulous. And then I read today in some stuff, show prep and other sound bites that others are shocked, on the left, in the media, that Obama won’t negotiate. I’m asking myself, really, folks, seriously now, remember the last couple of days, including last week, I said one of the things I’m trying to do as we head into this new year, my New Year’s resolution, lower profile. That’s kind of blown, but I tried, and I’m still trying on that, by the way. I also realized that one of the mistakes I make in doing this program is assuming that the people I’m talking about are intelligent and informed and aware.

I’ve come to the conclusion that I always, practically without exception, overestimate — and I’m serious now. I’m not trying to be insulting. My objective here is to communicate. They don’t understand subtle humor. They don’t understand parody. They don’t understand sarcasm, particularly when they’re the targets of it, but any other time, either. I’m looking at F. Chuck Todd and Major Garrett, do they really believe that just because the Republicans caved, that meant Obama would negotiate? Judging by their behavior yesterday, they’re really stunned Obama won’t negotiate. Do they really not know this guy, even them, in the Palace Media? Do you know how frustrating it is?

This is my point. Do you know how frustrating it is to apparently be in a really small group of people who perfectly understand who Barack Obama is, despite it being easy to see, easy to conclude who the guy is, what he is, what his plans are, why he’s what he is, why he’s doing what he’s doing. It’s as easy to see as the sun coming up in the morning, and yet hardly anybody does. You people do, don’t misunderstand, you do, that’s why you’re here. But they don’t. It is mind-boggling to me that, even after four years, people don’t get, while they’re right in the middle of it, up close and personal to it, understand what is happening to this country.

We have a president who has no problem behaving in a dictatorial fashion, and he’s getting even more arrogant and condescending about it now with his reelection. The idea that he’s gonna negotiate? You go back and read what Obama has himself said on the debt ceiling, which I, of course, have here in my formerly nicotine-stained fingers. Here’s what he said. Obama floor speech when he was a senator. This is March 20th 2006.

“The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It’s a sign that the US government can’t pay its own bills. It’s a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our government’s reckless fiscal policies. Increasing America’s debt weakens us domestically and internationally. Leadership means that the buck stops here. Instead, Washington is shifting the burden of bad choices today onto the backs of our children and grandchildren. America has a debt problem and a failure of leadership. Americans deserve better.”

He has just described himself! Failure of leadership, increasing America’s debt weakens us domestically and internationally. This is why I know that he knows what he’s doing. I just listen to him. I’ve listened to him tell the unions what he intended with health care. I’ve listened to him describe how he feels about the country, from audiotape interviews in the nineties and the early 2000s. I know. It’s not hard to find. And here are his own words from now almost seven years ago. The Republicans, if they want to — I mean, this could be one of the most fun ways to do this. Instead of coming up with their own statements and their own reaction, just send Boehner and Cantor and everybody else out to read this.

Any Republican in the House, just go to a microphone and read the following: “The fact that we are here today to debate raising America’s debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the US government can’t pay its own bills. It’s a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance our government’s reckless fiscal –” What is anybody gonna say? Well, this is what Obama said himself. Oh, the circumstances are different? Well, okay, modify it to relate to the current circumstances, but it doesn’t need any modification. Dumb down their debt ceiling argument to his. Anyway, we’ll have more on this as the program unfolds.

I just wanted to be honest with you, tell you I’m really shocked that so many people were really expecting that Obama would negotiate just because the Republicans caved. “Okay, the Republicans did their part. Now this is what the Democrat president has traditionally done. Now let’s negotiate so that we have a story.”