Axelrod: Limbaugh Markets the "Outrageous"

President's Chief Adviser Talks About Rush, FOX News, War Dead and the Conservative Party

(CBS)  Last Updated 1:44 p.m. ET

In response to criticisms of President Obama made in a TV interview this morning by conservative radio commentator Rush Limbaugh - who accused Mr. Obama of engaging in a "photo op" when he attended the return of American war dead from Afghanistan - White House Senior Adviser David Axelrod dismissed the comments as those of an "entertainer."

On "FOX News Sunday" Limbaugh said the president's attendance at the return of the remains of U.S. soldiers at Dover Air Force Base early Thursday morning was staged "because he's having big-time trouble on this whole Afghanistan dithering situation."

He also suggested the "syncophantic media" covering the ceremony at Dover was used to "create the impression that he has all this great concern."

"He's marketing the outrageous," Axelrod told "Face the Nation" host Bob Schieffer Sunday. "And he does very well with it. But as I said, he's an entertainer."

On Mr. Obama's viewing of the return of war dead, Axelrod said, "The President of United States went to Dover to represent the American people and pay his respect to the families who had made so much of a sacrifice to those brave service people who made the ultimate sacrifice. It was the appropriate thing to do, and I think most Americans appreciate that.

"We'll let Mr. Limbaugh fulminate, but I think the American people are well-served and believe they're well-served," Axelrod said. "We've got bigger responsibilities, [and] we're going to discharge those responsibilities."

When asked to respond to other adjectives used by Limbaugh to describe the president, including "immature, "inexperienced," and "very narcissistic," Axelrod would only say, "I think it's a surreal day when you're getting lectures on humility from Rush Limbaugh."

Axelrod alluded to the heavy hand of Limbaugh and other conservative Republicans in sidelining the GOP candidate, Dierdre Scozzafava, in New York's 23rd District Congressional race. Scozzafava withdrew from the campaign Saturday after polling third in the race and seeing many party heavyweights throw their support to Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman. The RNC has since announced it will support Hoffman with money and get-out-the-vote efforts for Tuesday's election.

"Certainly Mr. Limbaugh and others were behind that," Axelrod said. "I think it sends a clear message to moderates within that party that there's no room at the inn for them."

Axelrod assured Schieffer that the White House is not at war with FOX News.

"We're at war only with people who represent mistruths as truth. And that's true of any network, whether it's FOX, CBS or any other network. When errors of fact are stated or when opinion is offered as fact, we will challenge that," he said.

[Jimmy371]

Yobama cares about nothing except his next photo op.

[WakeUpAmericaNow]

Rush Limbaugh is a radio entertaner, he instigates people to the point of violence, many of his listeners are just not all that stable and the ones that are won't do their own work to research what the real facts are.....so they just listen to 5 second sound bits used to slant their minds even further....remember in a recent CBS interview Rush gave he said exactly that........" I am in it for the money,money money and I must be a great instigator as I have such a huge following !.......He doesn't care about the United States..........he is doing whatever he can to keep building his listener base and for sheer profit, all the while he continues to tear apart the people of this country, which seems to be the value the Republican Party most admires !

If he cared about The United States, he would have been challenging Bush and Cheney every chance he got while they were plundering the US treasury during their term.......no, instead he pandered to his listeners and that is exactly my point ! His type of hate and instigating for profit is very dangerious for the best interests of America ! So if you support him then, you really don't care about this Country either !

[WakeUpAmericaNow]

Rush Limbaugh is a radio entertaner, he instigates people to the point of violence, many of his listeners are just not all that stable and the ones that are won't do their own work to research what the real facts are.....so they just listen to 5 second sound bits used to slant their minds even further....remember in a recent CBS interview Rush gave he said exactly that........" I am in it for the money,money money and I must be a great instigator as I have such a huge following !.......He doesn't care about the United States..........he is doing whatever he can to keep building his listener base and for sheer profit, all the while he continues to tear apart the people of this country, which seems to be the value the Republican Party most admires !

If he cared about The United States, he would have been challenging Bush and Cheney every chance he got while they were plundering the US treasury during their term.......no, instead he pandered to his listeners and that is exactly my point ! His type of hate and instigating for profit is very dangerious for the best interests of America ! So if you support him then, you really don't care about this Country either !

[ravijet]

Axelrod says, "We're at war only with people who represent mistruths as truth." I agree with that. After all, Limbaugh once said (4/29/94 on his radio show), "It has not been proven nicotine is addictive, the same with cigarettes causing emphysema ..." Google emphysema and virtually every medical website says one of the main causes is smoking. So who's right. Rush or the medical establishment? And now he wants to tell us about health care? Axelrod's right, Rush is outrageous.

[dadirt]

Axelrod is like all of the other Obama whitehouse clowns. the truth hurts and there is more coming out of Limbaughs mouth than there is out of anyone at the white house. Between all the me me me and I, I, I, and Geitner's lies, I have never seen so much spin and lies. Look at meet the press on Saturday, last. all covering their butts, and not answering straight questions. Gietner cannot even look into the camera.

[WakeUpAmericaNow]

Maybe if you elect Sarah Palin in 2012, as a Rhodes Scholar she will be able to get you Health Care ! I am sure her Pink and White House, is filled with brillant people. Oh wait, isn't she me me me and I, I ,I.......doubt she is practicing for American Idol now......though with your conservative hero, soon to go to prison, Tom Delay, appearing on dancing with the stars anything is possiable now isn't it now. Maybe she and Limbaugh can run together on a ticket......he with his high school education and she being able to see Russia from her back yard...........they can save America.........from themselves and your circus nightmares !

You stated " You have never seen so much spin and lies " where were you during Bush and Cheney's run from 2001 through 2008 ? And from the nightly broadcasts of Beck, Hannity and O'Reily.....I am sure you ae studing the issues at that time, though they do repeat their shows or you can tape them !

Good Luck to you !

P.S .....Do not eat so much baking powder and sugar

[CetanLutah]

The blathering rhetoric of WakeUpAmericaNow is no different than words spoken by Rush. Many knowledgable words spoken without much wisdom. I am not a Rush fan nor Dem; nor Rep; nor Ind. I did not vote for Obama. But I do believe in giving him a chance since he is the Pres. Reading this site is a learning process to see what the minds of the readers/commentors have to say. Unfortunately, many have the attitude of "You can agree with me, or you can be wrong." Do not tell me my political views are wrong, simply because you disagree. There is no proof yours are correct, yours are only a point of view the same as mine.....hecitu(it is so)

[WakeUpAmericaNow]

Not much wisdom you speak of , isn't that your interpretation then ? .............If you think for one moment, you stated, you are not a Rush fan nor a DEM,REP or IND. then just what part or America do you fit into....since any person not committing to a party is a independent ? Unless you belong to another party and are ashamed to write it.

I am glad you are giving President Obama a chance, unlike so many others, as yes he is our President and has alot of policy to turn around left by the last administration that was about plundering the United States, taking away rights granted to us by the BILL of Rights and reacting out of fear ! .....

.I trust that is not just "WORDS" you are speaking since the real matter is the tearing apart of the American people, pitting one party against another and human beings against human beings..............you can have all the political views you want, that is not the " RHETORIC " as you called it " I have often addressed here. No indeed, it is the PAID " talking heads" that want to instigate people fears for sheer profit and those that support such behavior.............CetanLutah if you are of true Native American blood and ancestry, then you should be the first to understand how profit can lead to destruction and how propaganda does destroy people !

You didn't state if you were a regular FOX News watcher or supporter, if that is your source of wisdom, you may want to go sit with the Elders for a while longer for some counsel ! Where the proof you questioned about or stated, is contained in the last Administration actions and what they did to divide the Country further. Preemptively attack another sovereign Nation by lying to the American people and the world. Iraq and Suddam was once supported with arms and billions of dollars by the United States when they were " GOOD ARABS " as they fought Iran who Ronald Reagan and George H W Bush determined was our Enemy......hence when they were through with them, George W Bush and Dick Cheney came along to make a enemy out of Iraq through lies........ And lets not forget the billions that were spent supporting this lie and how much the Children and elderly suffered because of it Those billions could have done more good for them than the people who's coffers were filled, who have direct ties to that Administration.

Does any of this have a familiar tone ? CetanLutah ? So if you think that is what Rush speaks about then, well then by all means become a regular listener of his...............your words seem a sneaky way of supporting deceptions....................Have your point of political view or point of view but express them honestly !

[WakeUpAmericaNow]

Remembering Mitakuye Oyasin !

[ravijet]

Did a commentator say Limbaugh isn't outrageous? How about on the Sept. 22nd broadcast of his radio show when he said of Obama that "Do you know he has not one shred of African-American blood?" He railed, speaking of Obama, "He's arab." On the same program he acknowledged that Obama's dad was from Kenya (a country in Africa). You want to know what's really outrageous? That a guy with an atlas could probably beat Rush in a debate.

[RobertSugg]

Rush Limbaugh does not debate. He comments on pre-recorded sound bites, which cannot answer back. He shuts down opposing callers in mid-sentence and deftly hits the dump button as he derides them and eyes the clock for next commercial.

Intelligent opposing callers know better than to call at all.

I would like to hear Rush defend his claim, for example, that global warming is a hoax in a live debate against a knowledgeable person on the subject. He would crumble on the weight of evidence and embarrass himself in front of his finite legion of fans.

[mahalapril]

Then how come O'Reilly is No. cable news for 8 years in a row and counting and far surpass the combined audience of all the competitors.Fox cable is also No. 1. Nobody can dispute the numbers of Nielsen's ratings.

[WakeUpAmericaNow]

Because he knows how to instigate the listener base of FOX NEWS and why....strictly for profit.......Fox News station and O'Reily give them what they want to hear or are afraid of...O'Reily's profit motive has a good example .... the man tries to sell more merchandise/crap on his program than any of the other takling heads combine. Not sponsors products, his own........

The Republicans and many conservatives are being led down a continued path of destruction by "Talking Heads" the likes of Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity and O'Reiley who are in it for the money and extract it by intigating the subject.......They could care less about Republicans or America for that matter and are laughing their ass of at just how easy it is to con these folks !

[mahalapril]

Then how come O'Reilly is No. cable news for 8 years in a row and counting and far surpass the combined audience of all the competitors.Fox cable is also No. 1. Nobody can dispute the numbers of Nielsen's ratings.

[markw1234]

Thanks to Rush's party splitting, NY23 will go to the Dems. The Dems haven't won NY23 since the Civil War. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you Rush!!!!! The GOP mouthpiece has spoken. Rush's way or the highway!

[WakeUpAmericaNow]

You are now correct.........the conservative canidate has just called the democrat and ceeded the race !

Rush Limbaugh and Sarah Palin endorse the conservative over the moderate republican whom drop out, she still recieved 6 % of the vote..............they don't want Limbaugh's or Palin's nonsence in upper state New York.......evn though the district has been Republican for many years !