Michael Steele on the Today Show

TPM media assembled this clip of Michael Steele on the Today Show. I love this clip. You can tell the Republicans hate this topic when Michael Steele says "this has been a great little distraction, that was yesterday's news, lets move forward". They really don't want anyone to consider this a legitimate topic. Unfortunately when Rush says that it is common sense that as a Conservative that he wants Barack Obama's policies to fail, that is important.

What do we glean from that statement? First, we see that it is more important for Rush that he is right than the nation to recover from this economic recession. Conservatism is more important to him then being an American. He is an ideologue. Secondly, it doesn't even matter to Rush what policies President Obama uses to succeed. He wants President Obama to fail regardless. Rush Limbaugh is now anti-American, he is certainly no patriot. That is the conclusion I reach from the available data. He wants America to fail since he doesn't share the party identification with its current leaders. Period.

This is all fine and dandy, but how does that matter to the Republican party as a whole? Well it wouldn't if Rush Limbaugh was just a member of the party. It would be one ideologue's viewpoint and though despicable, it wouldn't be something to blame Republicans as a whole for. But unfortunately the events of the last week or so show that Rush Limbaugh is the ideological leader of the Republican Party. RNC head Michael Steele, House Minority Whip- Rep. Eric Cantor, Sen. John Barrasso, Rep. Phil Gingrey, and Gov. Mark Stanford have all groveled at the feet of Rush Limbaugh. The Republican Party leadership is openly submissive to Rush. That is deeply unfortunate and ties the entire party to Rush Limbaugh's point of view. It means that the Conservative movement and the Republican party are now all anti-American.

Hopefully Republicans will grow a spine and cast off this cancer from their party. This situation does no one any good. How can Republicans even claim to attempt to govern when their leader is asking for the government to fail, so as to cast the worst possible light on President Barack Obama?

Update: For more Republicans agreeing with Rush, see this Think Progress article