Liberals Want Limbaugh Booted Off Armed Forces Radio
By: Richard Stewart | Source: CNSNews.com
May 28, 2004 1:27AM EST

By Melanie Hunter
CNSNews.com Deputy Managing Editor
May 27, 2004

(CNSNews.com) - A liberal group that monitors conservative media wants Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to remove radio talk show host Rush Limbaugh from the American Forces Radio and Television Services, formerly known as Armed Forces Radio.

According to Media Matters for America, which describes itself as the first organization to systematically monitor the media for conservative "misinformation," Limbaugh has spent the past four weeks trivializing and condoning the U.S. mistreatment of Iraqi prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison.

"It is abhorrent that the American taxpayer is paying to broadcast what is in effect pro-torture propaganda to American troops," the group's president and CEO David Brock wrote to Rumsfeld. "I ask you to consider removing Mr. Limbaugh from the radio network to protect our troops from these reckless and dangerous messages."

Limbaugh's hour-long show on the American Forces Network is taxpayer-funded and broadcast to almost one million U.S. troops stationed in more than 175 countries and U.S. territories, including Iraq, Brock said.

On his May 4 radio show -- in response to a caller who suggested that what happened at Abu Ghraib was like a "college fraternity prank" -- Limbaugh agreed.

"This is no different than what happens at [Yale University's] Skull and Bones initiation, and we're going to ruin people's lives over it and we're going to hamper our military effort, and then we are going to really hammer them (the culprits) because they had a good time," Limbaugh said.

"You know, these people are being fired at every day. I'm talking about people having a good time, these people, you ever heard of emotional release? You of heard of need to blow some steam off? These people (prisoners) are the enemy. Our people are being fired at, shot at, these are young people that have volunteered to go over there and they're having bullets fired in their way, bombs and mortar fire aimed at 'em by the people that they are guarding and charged to get information from. Everybody has a breaking point. Now, I'm not suggesting that it's common, normal in disciplined military structures for people to lose control. I'm suggesting that it might be understandable. "

In the same broadcast, Limbaugh remarked that what happened at Abu Ghraib, in his opinion, should not be standard operating procedure. "But I don't think that it is," he said, "and I think everybody is overreacting."

He also said the U.S. is "investigating itself to the point of paralysis" and the U.S. is going to "end up with people afraid to pull the trigger."

Watching every word

The "Skull and Bones" remarks have become a big deal in liberal "get Limbaugh" circles. In fact, Media Matters for America recently ran television ads discrediting Limbaugh on the basis of his Skull and Bones remark.

On his May 14 broadcast, Limbaugh said he believes "the prison photos are a way to damage our war effort and damage Bush, and perhaps lead the way to his defeat at the polls in November, which is what this whole prison abuse thing is all about for these people wringing their hands and acting like it's the worst thing they've ever seen."

Brock's letter of complaint to Defense Secretary Rumsfeld also mentioned "recent racially charged and sexist remarks made by Limbaugh on his broadcast" and it complained about Limbaugh's "irresponsible commentary" on May 21, when Limbaugh suggested that the media ought to start making money off the Abu Ghraib prison photos and videos.

"We need some prison torture, you know, bubble gum cards," Limbaugh said, making the point that the "abuse" scandal was getting more media attention than the beheading of American civilian Nicholas Berg.

Noting the "importance of troop morale and unity during this time of conflict," Brock asked Secretary Rumsfeld to "review whether it is appropriate for the U.S. government to broadcast such messages, which may sow seeds of discord in the ranks."

"As we approach Memorial Day, and as Americans honor our soldiers, the men and women of our military deserve better than to be subjected to a radio host who excuses the worst among their ranks rather than celebrating the best, and who continually uses prejudiced rhetoric that divides rather than unites Americans," Brock concluded.

Media Matters for America also has launched a petition to give the American people "an opportunity to express their disapproval of the broadcast of Limbaugh's irresponsible and divisive comments on American Forces radio."

Al Gore, too

In a speech on Wednesday, former Vice President Al Gore also went after Limbaugh, saying that President Bush ought to condemn the conservative broadcaster:

"This president episodically poses as a uniter and healer," Gore said. "If he really has any desire to play that role, then I call upon him to condemn Rush Limbaugh, perhaps his strongest political supporter, who said publicly that the torture in Abu Ghraib was 'a brilliant maneuver' and that the photos were 'good old American pornography,' and that the actions portrayed were simply those of people 'having a good time' and 'needing to blow off steam.'"

"There's something going on," Limbaugh said on his radio show Wednesday. "I mean, every day now somebody is out there trashing me and mentioning my name from someplace…These comments (about Iraqi prisoner mistreatment) are two weeks old. Now they've even got Gore mouthing these comments.

(Morning Editor Susan Jones contributed to this report.)

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