RUSH: Sarah Palin closed out her career as governor of Alaska yesterday. We have three sound bites from her remarks.
PALIN: You have such important jobs reporting facts and informing the electorate and exerting power to influence. You represent what could and should be a respected, honest profession that could and should be a cornerstone of our democracy. Democracy depends on you. And that is why our troops are willing to die for you. So, how about — in honor of the American soldier — you quit making things up. (cheers and applause) And don’t underestimate the wisdom of the people.
RUSH: Now, what elected official do you hear talking that way to the media about the media? There is a reason why this woman drew huge crowds during the campaign last summer and into last fall. And she’s exactly right. They’ve met their Waterloo, as I said last week, and it’s Barack Obama. They have sacrificed integrity (whatever little they had) their character, their professionalism, to prop this guy and his administration up. They are stenographers for Rahm Emanuel. They’re propagandists for the White House and, increasingly, the Democrat Party at large. Here, Sarah Palin warns Alaska to resist big government.
PALIN: We must value and live the optimistic pioneering spirit that made this state proud and free, and we can resist enslavement to big central government that crushes hope and opportunity. Be wary of accepting government largesse. It doesn’t come free, and often accepting it takes away everything that is free. Melting into Washington’s powerful, caretaking arms will just suck incentive to work hard and chart our own course right out of us — and that not only contributes to an unstable economy and dizzying national debt, but it does make us less free.
RUSH: Is there another elected official talking that way about big government? Sadly, no. This next bite is one of my favorites.
PALIN: Please, let’s not start believing that government is the answer. It can’t make you happy or healthy or wealthy or wise. What can? It is the wisdom of the people and our families and our small businesses and industrious individuals, and it is God’s grace helping those who help themselves. (whistles and cheers) And then this allows that very generous voluntary hand up that we’re known for enthusiastically providing those who need it.
RUSH: That is… (laughs) That’s good. ‘Government can’t make you happy or healthy or wealthy or wise.’ Is there an elected official saying these things? Now, remember, we’ve got all kinds of people on our side thinking this woman’s stupid. She’s an idiot. You know, she’s unsophisticated and so forth. I’m always asked what I think of Sarah Palin. Greta asked me in the interview, and we’ll play the sound bite of what I said. The question: ‘[F]rom an ideology point of view, who do you think is the smartest or best candidate in your mind now?’
RUSH ARCHIVE: I’m looking right now who can win. And I’m looking who excites crowds. And also I think, Greta, that the State-Run Media and the Democrat Party will go a long way in telling us who they are most afraid of. And I don’t think they’re afraid of Mike Huckabee, because they never talk about him. I don’t think they’re afraid of Mitt Romney much, although if he surfaces, they’ll go after his religion again. But they’re trying to destroy Sarah Palin. They’re literally trying to destroy, not just her career, but her reputation. Now, if they’re not worried about Sarah Palin, why do this? I think they, the Democrats, are telling us who right now they are most afraid of, who they think can beat Obama. It’s not hard to understand why. You covered Palin a lot during the campaign. Largest crowds on the Republican side, the most enthusiasm. People were revved up and fired up, in some cases even more than Obama rallies. And the Obama rallies were just cult people. They were just showing up to be part of the story. They didn’t care what Obama was saying. It’s just he was Obama. Sarah Palin was exciting people on substance.
RUSH: Now, to illustrate my point about the media and their fear of Sarah Palin, let’s go to MSNBC Live. The anchor, Carlos Watson, was speaking with the White House correspondent Norah O’Donnell and the Financial Times’ Chrystia Freeland about Governor Palin. They had this exchange.
WATSON: We talked in the nineties a good deal about the ‘angry white male’ and ‘angry white men.’ Instead of the face of that maybe being a Rush Limbaugh, that the face of it could become a Sarah Palin. Interesting to me. What’s…? Uhhh, what’s your take on her political opportunities in the near term?
O’DONNELL: No doubt! Yesterday these lines were tough. They would never make it in a general election campaign, but to her supporters, it was exactly the kind of political red meat that people love. It’s the kind of red meat that her supporters love. It’s the kind of red meat that has gained her some 13,000 people that have made small donations that have gotten — helped her bank this more than a million dollars. So, you betcha, she’s got a political future! You betcha she’s going to be out there traveling around.
RUSH: Now they’re starting to make fun of her. ‘You betcha, you betcha.’ They’re clearly worried, and reviving the ‘angry white…’ Once again another prediction I made. We have a black president and racism is going to be exacerbated. It’s not gonna get better. It’s not gonna go away. We’re not going to get rid of our original sin. I said all that during the campaign, and now look. Now she’s an angry white woman. Now they’re bringing her race into this, replacing me as the ‘angry white guy,’ which, of course, was a myth. It’s just how they tried to characterize people that were opposing them who have success. So if you listen to them, they will tell you who they’re really afraid of by who they try to destroy, who they criticize, who they keep talking about. And they’re worried about her, and making fun of her and so forth. It’s going to be interesting to see all this fallout.
BREAK TRANSCRIPT
RUSH: You know, four years ago the angriest white man in America was Howard Dean. Today the angriest white man in America is Chris Matthews. And they’re both Democrats. What’s the point?