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Bid for Senate slip-up set to $2.1 million
BY ANTHONY CHAPLIN
STATESMAN STAFF WRITER
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh.
BettyC588 became the proud owner of eBay's most expensive charity item ever on Oct. 19. The item was a two -page letter, which, according to the eBay item description, was written by Senate majority leader Harry Reid and signed by more than 40 other democratic members of the Senate, including presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. This historic official letter was not concerning the regulation of commerce with foreign nations, the laying or collecting of taxes or any other issue outlined in Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution for that matter. The letter was a personal attack on a U.S. citizen named Rush Limbaugh.
Limbaugh needs little introduction these days. The outspoken, conservative talk showhost has been shooting his mouth off for decades, complaining about the way things are run in this country, as any good political talk show host should. During the month of October, Limbaugh enjoyed some increased popularity due to a slip of the tongue. "Phony soldiers," he proclaimed. Audiences everywhere gasped.
Of course, people often forget to take context into account when evaluating what others have said. Limbaugh had been discussing a left-wing television ad featuring a man called Jesse McBeth. McBeth claimed to be a veteran opposing the war, but curiously, he was discharged before completing basic training.
Thus, the phrase "phony soldier" seems more appropriate. Regardless, old Reid must have jumped 10 feet when he heard "phony soldiers" uttered over the airwaves. "Unpatriotic!";
"Beyond the pale!" he roared to his fellow senators, when proposing his letter to the Senate floor on Oct. 1. The infamous letter was composed and signed, addressing Limbaugh's CEO, Mark Mays. "We call on you publicly to repudiate these comments "
Apparently the United States Senate doesn't like the way they are running things over there at Clear Channel Communications. This is exactly what the ego of Limbaugh needs: a congressional letter written with a passion similar to that used in writing to the King of England 200 years ago. Limbaugh put the letter he received up for auction with 100 percent of the proceeds going to the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation, an organization that provides scholarships for the children of Marines and federal law enforcement officers who are killed in action. Limbaugh also vowed to match the winning bid" dollar for dollar." This play was a slap to Reid's face, but how can someone shed a negative light on a charitable act?
Well, if you can't beat them, join them or better still: take all of the credit for yourself. On Oct. 19, as the close of the auction drew near, Senate majority leader Reid again took the floor. " this letterthat they're auctioning is going to be something that raises money for a really worthwhile cause. I don't know what we could do more important than helping make sure that children of our fallen soldiers and police officers who have fallen in the line of duty have the opportunity for their children to have a good education," according to live C-Span footage of Reid. He continued, unabashedly asking fellow Senate members to bid on his letter:
" so I would ask those that are wanting to do more, that they can go to the Harry Reid, search-actually go on, say "Harry Reid letter"-
this will come up on eBay. I encourage anyone interested in this with the means to do so to consider bidding on this letter and contributing to this worthwhile cause."Limbaugh decided to see if Senator Reid was as good as his word by sending a challenge through his show.
"I would like to issue this challenge to Sen. Reid and the 40 senators who signed his letter," he said. "You say you support the military. Well, I would like each of you, Sen. Reid and the 40 other senators who signed, to match whatever the winning bid is. Show us your support for the U.S. military by all 41 of you pro-military people, Democrats in the senate, match whateverthe winning bid is and send that amount to the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation.";So far, the answer to this challenge has been met with nothing but a deafening silence.
What Limbaugh said about certain American soldiers was not nice, but Limbaugh is an entertainer. He makes a living on controversial and often "unkind" things. The way the U.S. Senate handled the situation was crude and juvenile. They wasted time andresources to start a mudslinging match with a private citizen, and achieved nothing but a sound defeat with an embarrased tailbetween their legs.
