RUSH: Here’s Ed in Pittsburgh, you’re next. Welcome to the EIB Network. Hello.
CALLER: Hey, Rush. Mega dittos. Mega prayers, bud. I heard Mitch McConnell this morning congratulating Joe Biden and Kamala Harris on their win. And, you know, I have to tell you, it just sickens me, Rush. When I hear these career politicians congratulating each other on their many, many years of, quote, public service as they all accumulate millions and millions of dollars before they leave, and that’s called public service? It just doesn’t make any sense to me at all and it just kind of enrages me that they keep doing that, they call each other public servants even when they’re making millions and millions of dollars.
RUSH: Wait, wait, wait, wait. What does making millions and millions of dollars have to do with what McConnell said congratulating Biden?
CALLER: Well, he was congratulating all his years of public service. And, quite honestly, Rush, you know what else it sounded to me like? Hey, we’re putting the swamp back together —
RUSH: Oh, oh, oh, oh. Okay. Look. I’ve got the audio sound bite here. Let’s listen to the Turtle. This was on the Senate floor today, Mitch McConnell speaking about the Electoral College. But, look. This is the same answer I just gave the previous caller. If you have taken a look at “the news,” you will see that this statement by McConnell is being reported as Trump conceding. McConnell did it for him, McConnell has sewn it up, McConnell has finally acknowledged that Trump lost even if Trump won’t. That’s how this is being portrayed. This is what McConnell said.
MCCONNELL: The Electoral College has spoken so today I want to congratulate president-elect Joe Biden. The president-elect is no stranger to the Senate. He’s devoted himself to public service for many years. I also want to congratulate the vice-president-elect, our colleague from California, Senator Harris. Beyond our differences, all Americans can take pride that our nation has a female vice-president-elect for the very first time.
RUSH: And so there you have it. That suffices as a Trump concession in terms of the way it’s being reported by the media. Even though Trump hasn’t conceded anything, they are reporting that McConnell effectively did it for him. Now, your comment about public service and the fact that these people — you’re talking about Biden and Hunter, I gotta tell you, you know, it’s amazing. There are at least four separate federal criminal investigations of the Biden family going on right now. You know, the people about to move into the White House, there are four separate federal criminal investigations that resulted from Joe Biden’s years and years and years of, quote, unquote, public service. And here’s Mitch McConnell congratulating him on all those years of public service.
Here’s some headlines. “Hunter Biden Raked in $6M in Just Nine Months from Chinese Business Dealings – and That Doesn’t Include the 2.8 Carat-Diamond He Got As a Gift.”
“Hunter Biden Failed to Disclose $400,000 in Burisma Payments.”
Hunter Biden himself says the U.S. attorney’s office is investigating his tax affairs. He said, “I learned yesterday for the first time the U.S. attorney’s office in Delaware advised my lawyer also yesterday that they are investigating my tax affairs.” So where was all of this before the election? Well, it was there; it just wasn’t reported by the people who are reporting it now. So why are the people who didn’t report this before the election reporting it now?
Well, my friends, I have explained this on previous editions of this program. Remember, my theory is the ultimate objective is to get Biden replaced as soon as feasible. They want Kamala in there for a whole host of reasons. But even if I’m wrong about that, there is another theory. And it is the people in the deep state, the FBI, the intelligence community, look at what they’ve got on Biden now. I mean, the intelligence community, they want to be the first to meet with every president every day. They want to have access. They now have the means of — I mean, they can tell Biden what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. Otherwise they go public with all this. Otherwise they make hay out of it.
The fact that they have this data, the fact that they’re letting Biden know and everybody know on his team that this supposed criminal activity is something they are keeping an eye on is the best way they have of controlling him. It’s the best way they have of having the executive branch do what these people in the other regions of the executive branch want done. So the difference here is, rather than use this before the election as a means of maybe casting doubt on Biden’s competence and his credibility, they hold it. They hold on to the information and use it after he’s elected as a means of controlling him.
And that’s where we are right now. And that’s why all of a sudden these headlines are popping up everywhere. And that’s why all of a sudden everywhere all the details about all this stuff, which you and I knew before the election because of Bobulinski and some of the other people, the mainstream media never reported any of it. They’re only reporting it now, after the election. This is done so as to maintain a level of control over Biden as he assumes office next month.
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RUSH: Mitch McConnell, the Turtle, with sound bite number 10. John Harwood today was on CNN’s Newsroom, and he was on with Jim Sciutto, who said, “Moments before, Senate Majority Leader [the Turtle] made those comments on the Senate floor calling Biden president-elect for the first time, President Trump continued to tweet out baseless conspiracy theory attacks about the stolen election. Do you have any reaction from the White House on this yet from what [the Turtle] did? And, if not, how do you think the president handles what [the Turtle] did?”
HARWOOD: President Trump has the power to sink those two incumbent Republican senators if he wants to by discouraging his people from supporting them. Kelly Loeffler, the appointed senator; David Perdue, the elected senator. The president has the capacity to take away Mitch McConnell’s job as majority leader if he sinks those two. Is he willing to do it?
RUSH: Uh, yeah. I think these people think that he is. So just to explain this: McConnell goes out and basically says for the first time anywhere in the Republican Party, Joe Biden’s president-elect. Congratulations, Mr. President. By the way, congratulations, Kommie Harris. The American people are happy to see the first ever woman elected vice president. That’s great. This is so happy, we’re so all happy.
So Trump watches this. Trump gets mad. Trump says, “Oh, Turtle, you like being the leader of the Senate? Well, I’m gonna take it away from you. I’m gonna go out there and I’m gonna suggest to Republican voters in Georgia that they not support Kelly Loeffler and Perdue and thereby the Democrats are gonna own the government.
“And they’re gonna own the Senate and therefore you will have nothing to be leader of.” That’s what Harwood is suggesting Trump can do as a reaction to McConnell essentially acknowledging — for the Republican Party — that Biden is official.
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RUSH: Here is Ladd in Brunswick, Georgia, as we head back to the phones. I’m glad you waited, sir. Hello.
CALLER: Hey, God bless you Rush. We’re praying for you.
RUSH: Thank you, sir. I appreciate it.
CALLER: Right now, the establishment Republicans have fatal flaw. They think the movement Trump started is going away and the party is gonna revert back to the pre-Trump era. But the people who believe there was enough voter fraud to sway this election are not just some fringe group on Twitter, I think it encompasses everyday Americans, and my point is that we need to let the establishment know that if they don’t step up now in respect to issue of voter fraud then they won’t have a job after the next election.
RUSH: Uh… (sigh) You’re making it tough for me because I’m on your side and I’m with you on this, but that’s not gonna happen. The truth of the matter is that we have an entity that we’re up against, and it has in it both Republicans and Democrats — and that entity has been called “the deep state,” it’s been called “the Washington establishment,” it’s been called “the elites” — and they want no part of Trump’s base.
They have no desire to somehow find a way to incorporate Trump’s base in whatever they think the Republican Party is. They are content to be a minority party, if that’s what it takes, to eliminate the populism of the Trump base, the Trump voter. So while you’re sitting out there thinking that the establishment Republicans need to come up with a strategy to find a way to incorporate the Trump base, the Trump supporters.
They’re not doing that. They’re doing the exact opposite. They’re trying to figure out how to be viable without the Trump base. They don’t want the Trump base. The establishment wants no part of the Trump base. They haven’t wanted any part of the Trump base since before there was Trump. I… (sigh) All you have to do, if you want to know who these people are, is find the nearest Never Trumper and just listen to them.
Read what they write, listen to what they say, and you’ll get a very good heads up on what they think of the Trump base. I mean, these people acknowledged that they would rather vote for a Democrat than to support Donald Trump or to find a way to build a relationship with Trump supporters. They’d rather vote for a Democrat — and they did, and they proudly said so.
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RUSH: Never Trumper Steve Schmidt. Remember, he was the campaign consultant for McCain back in 2008 when McCain ran against Barack Hussein O. Steve Schmidt was the guy who turned on Sarah Palin and after McCain lost, Schmidt starts showing up on PMSNBC and basing went to the other side. He’s now a Never Trumper. He just said that Trump supporters are like the brownshirts in Germany in the twenties and thirties.
This is what they think of you. You’re no different than the brownshirts in Germany in the twenties and thirties. So, folks, if you’re sitting out there thinking that the Republicans in the Senate or in the House… I mean, there are exceptions, but there not very many. I think you can count on maybe two hands the number of Republicans in Washington who remain fervent Trump supporters.
There may be others, but they’re not visibly public about it, and this is just… They’re not trying to figure out a way to keep you on board. They’re not trying to find a way to make sure you Trump voters stay with them in the Republican Party. They want a Republican Party that doesn’t include you. There’s an analogy to this, and a lot of people are not going to remember it because you have to go back to the eighties.
But this is exactly what happened when Ronald Reagan left office after two terms and George H. W. Bush promised the third term of Ronald Reagan as part of his campaign, but the fact of the matter is that the Washington establishment — if you get right down to it, folks — did not like Reagan because they don’t like conservatism.
Mainstream, establishment Republicans have never liked conservatism. Oh, they’ll put on a great act. When Reagan was president, oh, it was the greatest thing in the world! They all wanted to serve. They all wanted to be in the bright lights that were shining on Reagan. They wanted to be in the cabinet. They wanted to do this; they wanted to do that. But when it was time for Reagan to leave office, they were happy.
It’s about conservatism. Trump… Call it populism, call it populist, whatever. Trump was implementing a conservative agenda. He was implementing the agenda the Never Trumpers have devoted their lives to, and still they opposed him. So they’re not calculating ways to find a way to fold you in with whatever Republican Party they hope to build.
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RUSH: Bill in the Charleston, South Carolina. I’m glad you called. How are you doing, sir?
CALLER: I’m well, sir. Mega dittos and prayers, Rush. It’s an honor to speak with you as a first-time caller.
RUSH: Thank you much. Great to have you here.
CALLER: (speed talking) After Trump leaves office and is no longer the titular head of the party, how soon before the Republicans currently distancing themselves have to take the reins? I mean, what timeline do you estimate before the internal turf war either retain the mandate for a backbone and double down on conservatives principles or face being put out to pasture and let the RINOs own the death knell of the party?
RUSH: All right. You gotta slow down. Let me… I gotta read what you said. “After Trump leaves off and is no longer the titular head of the party, how soon before the Republicans currently distancing themselves have to take the reins? What timeline before the internal turf war to maintain the mandate for conservative principles or let the RINOs own the death knell?” Well… (sigh) With Trump gone, who’s the leader?
CALLER: I wouldn’t know. Mitch McConnell, maybe?
RUSH: (laughing) Well, there isn’t a leader. That’s my whole point. There’s nobody that is… You have some guys in the House and maybe a couple in the Senate, but I don’t know a name to give you that’s going to pick up the gavel, the mantle of Trumpism and try to run with it. Do you?
CALLER: Um, Lindsey Grahamnesty?
RUSH: No. It won’t be Lindsey Grahamnesty. Lindsey Grahamnesty goes with the flow.
CALLER: I think it’s time for someone to step up. We got a power vacuum on the horizon.
RUSH: Well, who would you like it to be? Who would you like to see step into the role of leadership of the Trump movement?
CALLER: Well, I can’t be prouder than Tim Scott. Again, keeping it local in South Carolina, I think that definitely we have great representation there.
RUSH: Yeah, but is he a Trumpist? Is he gonna actively pick up the populist message in the absence of Trump and be thought of as the heir to Trump? If I understand your question, that’s basically what you’re asking me, right?
CALLER: Correct.
RUSH: And the alternative is that the RINOs regain control of the party, and we all know what that means. So if you can tell me, if you can name for me somebody who is going to assume the leadership position… Now, every movement at some point needs a leader. The Trump base is going to stay. It’s gonna hold steady. They are who they are. Trump voters, Trump supporters are who they are.
I think they existed before Trump came along. Trump just had the amazing ability to galvanize them, to lead them. But people who believe in making America great, they are numerous. Remember, we had the research that showed that 95% of Republicans supported Donald Trump. It became his party. The Republican Party is the Trump party.
I’ve heard people say that whether Trump is active in a leadership role or not, that the Trump base will stay; it will hold steady. But it will be absent a leader. In the meantime, the Republican establishment that you talk about is gonna be doing everything it can to — what’s the word? — eliminate or damage the power that Trump voters have within the Republican Party, even if it means that the Republican Party must “lose with honor” for a couple of elections.
I don’t think that the Republican establishment that you talk about wants any part of the Trump base because the Trump base is — in their view — a bunch populists, and they don’t like populism. They don’t like that at all, and they’d rather get back to the standing they had pre-Trump. I think they’re eager — that is, the Republican establishment.