Rush Limbaugh's Sandra Fluke comments "absurd," says Rick Santorum

AP Photo/Gary He

Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum on Friday dismissed radio host Rush Limbaugh's disparaging remarks about student activist Sandra Fluke as "absurd."

"He's being absurd, but that's you know, an entertainer can be absurd," Santorum said on CNN. "He's in a very different business than I am."

On his radio show, Limbaugh bashed Fluke as a "slut" and a "prostitute" because, in the context of President Obama's new health care rule calling for complete coverage of women's preventive health services, she has advocated for employers to pay for contraception.

Republicans have generally opposed the policy change, even after the administration modified it to address concerns about religious freedom. Santorum told CNN, "I'm concerned about the public policy of this president imposing his values on people, people of faith who morally object to the government telling them they have to do something, which they believe is a grave moral wrong."

The backlash against Limbaugh has been growing since he made the remarks on Wednesday, with Georgetown educators, women's organizations and politicians of all stripes decrying the language as inappropriate. President Obama even called Fluke directly today to offer her his support.

On his radio show on Friday, Limbaugh defend his comments, arguing that it was "insulting" that Fluke and other women's health advocates would ask taxpayers to fund for contraception for "people who want to have sex without consequences."

"All of the sudden we're told that people who want to have sex without consequences, we have to pay for it. And if we object, we're somehow Neanderthal," said Limbaugh. "Out of nowhere this comes up, and to me this is insulting."

Fluke became the subject of attention after Republicans turned her away from a House oversight hearing on the White House's contraception rule, where she had hoped to testify about a friend who lost an ovary due to lack of contraceptive care. Instead, she told her story in a mock congressional hearing later in the month.

In her testimony, Fluke largely discussed what she cast as the high cost of contraception and the important medical benefits it can offer women.

[notreich]

The headline should include that Santorum dismissed Limbaugh's 3-day rant as entertainment. Just saying that he said it was absurd makes it seem like Santorum actually condemned Limbaugh, which he did not.

[jflynn5110]

RINO Santorum is the Demo's secret weapon. Just ask Michael Moore.

[js2212]

by falcon2691 March 5, 2012 11:16 AM EST
Santorum's obviously fertile wife has not been pregnant in a while. Is she using birth control? Abstinance? There may be an explanation for Santorum's grumpiness in this question.
_________________________________________________________________

Some companies cover Viagra and Contraception with the health insurance they offer employees. If contraception is not covered by your plan, you are free to work somewhere else that you feel will fully meet your needs.

If you must be on contraception for health reasons, then you will not be able to work for some companies, if they do not offer contraception. Or you can just pay for it yourself. If you stay with a company that does not pay for your contraception, then you have have made a choice to forgo a certain benefit in favor of keeping that job.

I don't think Viagra should be covered either. But don't look at me. I didn't write that ridiculous legislation that needs to be defunded or repealed.

Frankly I'm surprised the democraps didn't include it in Obamacare. They tried to include everything else.

[falcon2691]

Santorum's obviously fertile wife has not been pregnant in a while. Is she using birth control? Abstinance? There may be an explanation for Santorum's grumpiness in this question.

[thomasmc1957]

I suspect "ex-gay" Santorum does not have sex with his wife for pleasure.

[kansas1946]

I have always thought Rush was gay, Tardacus. He just acts gay. He obviously can't please a woman, as you pointed out. He just needs to get out of the closet and join the good guys.

[something_to_say]

Insurance covers viagra but not contraceptives. What does Rush have to say about all the men that take viagra? Studs???? hmmmm.

[bilrobi1]

My guess is that he feels the same way as does about his insurance covering his addiction to prescription drugs.

[RobAla]

I don't care to defend Limbaugh insulting liberals or Bill Maher for insulting conservatives. We have matters of real importance facing the US, and this subject "free" contraceptives should have never been an issue.

When did it become a RIGHT for some people to demand that other Americans or companies PAY FOR THEIR BIRTH CONTROL CONTRACEPTIVES? We are not talking about some life saving drug. This is a drug related to one's personal sexual activity. This entire issue should have never come about.

We have major problems in the United States. We have a staggering $16 trillion national debt, more than 8% unemployment, we have no idea who is coming into this country through our borders, gasoline is about to hit record highs, Iran may soon be a nuclear power (Iran supplies most of the weapons to terrorists around the world),....etc. WHY WAS "FREE" CONTRACEPTIVES THE CURRENT GOAL OF PRESIDENT OBAMA? When it became important for him to divert attention away from his own failures during an election year - that is what this is all about.

This summer gas prices will cripple the nation's small economic recovery and the Supreme Court will rule that the individual mandate in President Obama's health care law (his crown jewel achievement - the one that he and other progressives crammed down the throats of a majority of Americans who still do not want it) to be unconstitutional. President Obama has NO answers for the major problems we face as a nation, so his only hope is to do something that will focus the attention of Americans on something else.

The beginning of the US Constitution states:
"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."

There is a big difference between "promote" the general welfare and "provide" or "pay" for the general welfare. We are required by law to share the expense of our common defense, but it is not the "right" of US citizens to demand that other Americans or companies "provide" them with free stuff - especially if it relates to personal sexual activity. In an ongoing attempt to "fundamentally transform" the US from a democratic republic into a socialist democracy, progressives are trying to "create" this "right" - but it does not exist. President Obama desires this also - but currently he is trying to divert the attention of the American people away from his own failures and onto something else.

[thomasmc1957]

Then why the hell should I have to pay higher taxes than people who WON'T use birth control, and breed like rabbits?

NO MORE TAX DEDUCTIONS FOR DEPENDENTS!

[jflynn5110]

thomasmc1957: You can lead people to water but you still can't make them drink.

[Larryyes25]

You bloggers are a joke. RUSH is correct. Employers should not be paying for contraception. You people here are nuts. You all must be living on my tax dollars to be backing this girl. Unlike you, I'm prepared to handle the absurdity of all this crap that the media keeps throwing at us as a nation. The leader of all the crap in the media, (which you folks don't seem to get) is the current leader of the free world BARRACK OBAMA! WAKE UP AMERICA, I'm just one man, someone who would stand for the freedoms that you don't realize we will all lose if you don't wake up soon.

[thomasmc1957]

And nobody should get a tax deduction for having children!

[mariannpepit]

I agree with your statement. Why should we cover women that go out and have a lot of sex with the men like Fluke did and be responsible to pay for her birth control pills or contraceptives. She needs to close her legs. Rush is right. She has a lot of nerve admitting it. And I don't give credit to the advertisers that dropped Limbaugh for telling truth. She is what she is and not ashamed of it. And women that agree with her are doing the same.

[BOB-C]

Good for Santorum, though he's in the same business, that of pandering to the absurd.

[js2212]

Correction: Pandering to the absurd is the realm of the left.

[Ben37221]

If Rush can call this very smart lady a prostitute, how will he feel if someone call his wife or dauther if he have one, prostitute? I am sure he won't appreciate it. When you point a finger at someone, the rest of your finger is pointing back at you.

[mariannpepit]

She did it to herself by saying she had so much sex she had to stop. What decent women would admit it. In my time she would be called the names that Rush called her so those names are nothing new for someone like her. And expecting the taxpayers to pay for her sex behanvior.

[bilrobi1]

He's a prostitute. He prostitutes himself every day to the lowest of tyhe low.

[diamruby]

It amazes me that it is okay to fund all the welfare babies from birth to death on our tax dollars but not okay to have birth control for the responsible people. Of course the male church leaders believe that women are here solely for the purpose of breeding & catering to their every need. Rush is a big fat ugly loud mouth slob with a very large ego. He is an insult the human race.