WASHINGTON -- What is that laughter I hear? I am at work here in
our nation's capital, where there is rarely much laughter. Rather
there are Solemnities passed from one High and Mighty to another.
On Capitol Hill the solons exchange Declarations of Virtue,
Manifestos of High Purpose, and increasingly Threats --
particularly threats against free-spirited writers and the
prodigies of Talk Radio. The giants of Congress also conspire in
slopping up the pork; for instance, just the other day, there was
an "earmark" of $130,000 for a National Fat Ladies' Library in Ohio
(or is that First Ladies' Library, but does it matter?) and
$500,000 for a "Virtual Herbarium" (perhaps a high-tech privy for
Senator Larry Craig). Yet I still hear laughter.
The laughter comes from El Rushbo, the Merry Sage of the
Excellence in Broadcasting Network. Rush just pulled a good one on
the Democratic leadership and those 41 Democratic senators who
thought they could intimidate the CEO of Clear Channel
Communications, syndicator of Rush's radio show, by sending him a
threatening letter. He gave the letter to Rush who promptly
informed his 20 million listeners that he would auction off the
preposterosity on eBay, match the highest bidder with a check of
his own, and send the two checks off to the Marine Corps-Law
Enforcement Foundation to further its charitable work with the
children of fallen Marines. He also invited the posturing senators
to join in the generosity.
"This is more fun than I've ever had in my life," Rush declared
on Hannity & Colmes during their October 18 show. By then he
had sixty or so bids, the highest for $851,000. He was faced with
writing the Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation a personal
check for almost $1 million. Nonetheless he was laughing. Later he
laughed even more when one of his supporters bid $2.1 million for
the Democrats' epistolary assault on the First Amendment. Now Rush
is out an equal amount, but all to a good cause. He can now claim
responsibility for a $4.2 million fund drive for the Marine
Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation. What has been the Democrats
response, a matching grant? Actually Senator Harry Reid lumbered
out onto the Senate floor and heaved up yet another exhalation of
guff.
Rather surprisingly the Democratic Party has made attacks on
free speech a major weapon in its arsenal. Recently we reported in
The American Spectator that Congressman Henry Waxman,
chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee,
proposed with some of his investigators a review of the transcripts
of such conservative talk radio hosts as Rush, Sean Hannity, and
Mark Levin. The goal was to influence the FCC to reinstate the
so-called Fairness Doctrine, thus allowing the federal government
to shape radio programming. Waxman's response to our report was to
at first claim he had been "misrepresented," then to denounce our
report as "fictitious," and finally to play the bully. He demanded
an apology.
My response was to tell him that I would apologize for our
thoroughly accurate report once he do the "decent thing and
purchase a toupee." I think we can all agree Henry Waxman would
look less menacing as a blond. His next gambit was to protest that
"I certainly support the First Amendment." I cannot claim that this
was in response to my offer of an apology, but I can tell you that
he has yet to purchase a toupee, and that that bald head of his
puts many of us in mind of Mussolini. Has he ever been to Rome?
My guess is that the Democrats' threats to the First Amendment
will continue. Yet, an even better bet is that Rush will continue
to get the better of these brutes. From all I can tell, the 41
Democrats' attack on him made him genuinely angry, but Rush has a
gift. He remains cool under fire and responds with devastating
weaponry, wit and humor. In a free and open society, those weapons
defeat the Democrats' phony indignation every time. Rush left the
41 Democrats looking like clowns...and cheapskates. So far as I
have been able to tell, not one has yet to send the Marine
Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation a check.
topics:
Harry Reid, Law, NATO
