RUSH: Here’s Jonathan, Monticello, Kentucky. Glad you waited, sir. You’re next on the program. Hello.

CALLER: Hey, Rush. I really appreciate you taking my call.

RUSH: You bet, sir.

CALLER: It’s an honor to be on the program. I want to say, I agree a hundred percent with the mandate that you’ve articulated this week since the election. I agree a hundred percent with that. I’m just concerned that our current Republican leadership will not carry that same banner. I’m sure I’m probably not the only one that has that concern. So my question is, you know, what are the chances of the leadership, i.e., McConnell, Boehner being replaced by someone more conservative or are our chances better trying to influence the current leadership toward a more conservative agenda?

RUSH: The first question, I’d say slim to none. Unless something’s going on that I’m unaware of, I’d say it’s slim to none. On the second part of your question, I think that’s always a possibility, but it happens in ways that we will never know. If there are conservative members that are trying to encourage or influence, we’ll never know about it unless it leaks. If outside forces are to have any influence, that’s something else we wouldn’t know.

But this is the big question. I mean, you’re right. It’s the big question. You know, where is the Republican leadership? See, they’re afraid, I think, that confrontation — the reason I’m pounding this is because I think they also buy into this silly notion that people want ’em to get along. That’s not why they won this election. I am pounding this as much as hoping they hear it as well as you. They won this election to stop this!

CALLER: Right.

RUSH: And it’s not confrontational to stop this. They’re standing up for the people of the country. They’ve got their donors to worry about, the Chamber of Commerce that want amnesty. There are all kinds of pressures on these people. We can’t deny that. The media is putting constant pressure on ’em. But I said earlier, somebody sent me a note, Jonathan, saying, “You don’t sound nearly as upbeat yesterday after this big win as you did in ’94.” And I had to stop and think about that for a second. I had to stop and think about it and agree. The reason is very simple, and it’s not a criticism.

In 1994, when the Republicans won the House, we knew exactly why. Contract with America. They ran on a national agenda, and here is what we’re gonna do, one through 10. And after they won, they said, “Okay, we have just gotten elected to do these 10 things. That’s what people voted for us for, and we’re gonna do ’em,” and there was excitement. And they went out and did it! They started implementing the Contract with America, and they eventually balanced the budget. I’ll never forget John Kasich on the final vote, the Democrats are hemming and hollering like a bunch of stuck pigs in his committee.

He’s listening to ’em, and he’s rolling his eyes, and after they finish, he says, “Okay, it’s time for the vote. We’re gonna do this.” They take the vote and they balance the budget. We don’t feel like any of that’s on tap now. That’s why we’re a little unsettled, because we have to have it shown to us. But we’re optimistic because the opportunity is there. And this is why I’m pounding what I think is the only possible conclusion of what this election means. These people didn’t run on an agenda. Individual candidates did, but the party at large didn’t. And the media’s working on ’em, all kinds of people are trying to convince ’em, “Hey, you better compromise. You better get along. You’re sent here to get things done and make this work.”

They’re not sent there to make it work. The way it’s been working was voted out two days ago. So like you, I hope the message gets through. To me, not being there, it’s easier to do and say and think. But let’s say they’re serious about repealing parts of Obamacare, like the medical device tax. Okay, produce the bill. Produce the bill that takes medical devices out of Obamacare, no tax, no nothing, no restrictions, get ’em out of there.

You send a letter to the president with that piece of legislation and attached to it the polling data supporting it, 75% of the American people want this taken out. Send it up there, publicize it. “We just sent the president today a piece of legislation to remove the medical device tax in Obamacare complete with a series of public opinion polls that show 75% of the American –” Send it up there! Publicize it, press conference, send it up there.

You turn the president into the obstructionist. You turn the president and the Democrats into the people governing against the will of the people. You show yourself as trying to do the will of the people, what you were elected to do. It seems like a slam dunk to me. But I’m not there. And they would probably tell me, “It’s not that simple, Rush. Not all of our members in the caucus would agree with that kind approach.” Okay, fine and dandy, but come up with something. This is such an opportunity here.

There’s multiple opportunities here to make the Republican Party the dominant party in the House of Representatives and maybe the Senate for years, is possible here. And part and parcel of that is if people are worried about Hillary, you can diminish her chances here. There’s a golden opportunity in these two years.

But, grab audio sound bites eight, nine, and 10. John Heilemann and what’s his name, Mark Halperin. They write these books after campaigns are over telling what went on in the campaign that they didn’t tell you during the campaign, and they have a show on the Bloomberg TV network called With All Due Respect. They know where the action is, and they want their show mentioned, obviously.

So they make sure that they mention my name so that I will play sound bites from their show on this program, building their audience. They’re not… They’re smart guys. I mean, I’ve got sound bites from Halperin mentioning my name, too, but not related this. But I want you to listen to this, because this is the subject. Here’s John Heilemann opening the program.

HEILEMANN: I’m John Heilemann!

HALPERIN: And I’m Mark Halperin! And with all due respect to Rush Limbaugh, I believe I detect the sweet smell of compromise in the air.

RUSH: Here comes pressure on the Republicans. “With all due respect” to me, meaning, they know what I’m taking this election to mean: Stop the Democrats. They’re saying, “No, we’re talking to Republicans, and they want to compromise! They think they gotta come up here and make things work and get along.” So that’s the open. Here next, Charlie Rose on PBS and his show is talking to Heilemann. He says, “Hey, is the Republican Party more conservative because of this election or are they more moderate because of this election?”

HEILEMANN: You’ve seen establishmentarian elected officials and strategists in the papers saying — using word like wackos. “The wackos are now… have been purged. The wackos are now back in their cages. We are now back in charge,” and that kind of language tells you something about what the party — the party establishment — has taken as the lesson.

RUSH: In this sound bite, “the wackos” are you. The wackos are the Tea Party. What Heilemann is saying is that he’s all excited. He’s running around on Capitol Hill talking to Republicans about the election, and they’re all saying, “Yeah, yeah! We got those Tea Party nutcases back in their cages. We won. The wackos are back in their cages. We’re now back in charge.”

That means… Whether this is true or not, this is an attempt to pressure Republicans on Capitol Hill not to embrace Tea Party, Tea Party candidates, ’cause that’s wacko. That’s extremism. And here’s Dana Bash, CNN’s America’s Choice 2014, talking about the new Republican majority and whether Boehner has control of the Republicans or not.

BASH: Let’s sort of go big picture about gridlock. I still think that even though, uh, Republicans have a very big majority — even bigger now in the House — you walk around the halls in the House, and Republicans are worried not about getting beaten by a Democrat, but getting beaten by a Republican. They don’t care about a general election. Their biggest concern is a primary.

RUSH: So we are to sit here and believe that (this sound bite’s last night) the day after the election — which was historic, massive, landslide, top-to-bottom skunk the Democrats. We are to believe, Dana Bash wants us to believe that Republicans — the day after — were telling her that they are more worried about their next primary and the dreaded Tea Party candidates they’re gonna face than whatever’s coming up with the Democrats in the next two years.

Now, I play these sound bites for you in answer to the caller’s question. He wants to know, “Is there going to be any new leadership in the House, and, if not, then how…?” Right here you have the kind of pressure on the Republicans in the House. The media is already reporting that they’re giddy ’cause the wackos are back in cages. But they’re still a little scared ’cause the wackos are gonna run against ’em two years from now in the primaries.

I’ll never forget when I spoke at the freshman orientation, Camden Yards, 1994.

I told these newly elected House guys, “Please, you’ve got to ignore the media. They’re not gonna treat you as winners. They’re not gonna come to you for the ultimate answer to things. The Democrats are still their buddies. They hate you. They don’t like the fact you won. They’re gonna do everything they can to humiliate you and get you back in the minority. Do not fall for anything that makes it look like they have newfound respect or love for you, ’cause they don’t like the fact that you won,” and they don’t now.

We’ll just have to wait and see, folks.

We’ve got an opportunity.

Wait and see.